Peruvian Chabad House Damaged in 8.0-Magnitude Earthquake

Sterna Sara Blumfeld, co-director of Chabad-Lubavitch of Peru, said her family escaped yesterday's devastating earthquake relatively unscathed.

Blumfeld told a morning news reporter from Israel's Channel 2 that all of the glass windows in her Lima house exploded during the 7.9-magnitude trembler that struck the South American country Wednesday night.

Civil defense officials said that the quake hit the Ica region incredibly hard, killing at least 335 people. Lima, the capital city, suffered one confirmed fatality.

Schneur Feigan, a regular of the Chabad House in Lima, told Yediot Ahronot's Web site that the noise from the earthquake was horrendous. He was staying in one of the city's hostels that cater to Israelis when the quake struck.

"We sat on the porch and suddenly felt strong shakings," said Feigan. "The hostel really shook. We heard screaming from the building across the street and then everyone started running downstairs.

"We went out to the street," he added. "The road was full of people who fled their buildings."

According to Valid Menzor, Israel's ambassador to Peru, no Israelis are known to have been hurt.

"We checked the hostels and did not identify, as of yet, injured Israelies," said the ambassador, who added that it is not the country's peak travel period. "All [diplomatic personnel] are safe and sound."