A 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck off the southern coasts of Chile and Argentina on Friday, the United States Geological Survey said.

A major, 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck in the South Atlantic Ocean on Friday, prompting a tsunami alert for parts of the Chilean coast, according to monitoring agencies in the United States. The temblor happened at 8:58 a.

The quake was registered in the drake passage between Cape Horn and Antarctica at a depth of 10km (six miles) on Friday, according to the US Geological Survey.