Washington  - A 5.9-magnitude earthquake shook Chile Thursday evening, followed by two after-shakes felt in the capital Santiago.

There were neither injuries nor damages from the temblor, said Carmen Fernandez, director of the civil defence organization. There were reports of communications disturbances that were attributed to overloading from excited Chileans rather than to the effects of the quake.

The epicentre was 75 kilometres north of the port city of Valparaiso on the Pacific coast, the seismological institute at the University of Chile said.

First estimates indicated a stronger quake of 6.3 magnitude.

Chile is frequently hit by earthquakes. Most new buildings are built with earthquake resistance. (dpa)