A 5.8-magnitude earthquake shook the southeastern part of the Dominican Republic Wednesday, including the capital city of Santo Domingo.
Thousands of capital residents spilled out of homes and office buildings, alarmed by the rare quake.
The United States Geological Service (USGS) said the quake occurred at 5:15 p.m. local time (2115 GMT) and located its epicenter at Boca de Yuma, in La Altagracia province, some 210 km east of the capital, at a depth of 108 km.
The quake, which lasted almost two minutes, was felt most strongly in the southeast of the island nation, where the well- known tourist resorts of Punta Cana and Bavaro are located.
In Santo Domingo, the quake caused panic among thousands of residents and employees of office buildings over five-stories high, though officials have reported no deaths or damage from the quake so far.
The last major quake to hit the country was a magnitude 5 on the Richter scale temblor on March 6 of this year, which was centered in the Mona Canal that separates the country from nearby Puerto Rico.