GETTY•IG Over 100 have been killed in quakes, including those in Japan

At least 413 people have been killed in Ecuador’s biggest earthquake in decades as a 7.8 magnitude quake struck off the Pacific coast on Saturday and was felt around the Andean nation of 16 million people, causing panic as far away as the highland capital Quito. Vice President Jorge Glas said as well as leaving hundreds dead, more than 2,500 people were injured. The latest quake follows devastating tremors in Japan late last week when one, measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale, injured more than 1,000 trapping people in collapsed buildings only a day after a quake killed nine people in the same region. Rescue crews searched for survivors of a magnitude 7.3 earthquake that struck Japan's Kyushu Island, the same region rattled by a 6.2 quake two days earlier. Around 20,000 troops have had to be deployed following the latest 7.3 earthquake at 1.25am local time on Saturday. Roads have also been damaged and big landslides have been reported, there are also 200,000 households without power. The death toll in the latest Kyushu earthquake is 16 people and a previous earthquake that struck the area on Thursday had killed nine people. There have been other large earthquakes recorded in recent days, including a major one in southern Japan which destroyed buildings and left at least 45 people injured, after Myanmar was rocked on Wednesday.

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Tremors were also felt as far as 500 miles away at the national park in India where the Royal couple Kate and William were visiting. Japan's Fire and Disaster Management Agency said 7,262 people have sought shelter at 375 centers since Friday in Kumamoto Prefecture. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed to do everything he could to save lives following the disaster. He said: "Nothing is more important than human life and it's a race against time." On Thursday, The Japanese Red Cross Kumamoto Hospital confirmed 45 were injured, including five with serious injuries after a quake of magnitude 6.2 to 6.5 and a series of strong aftershocks ripped through Kumamoto city. Several buildings were damaged or destroyed and at least six people are believed to be trapped under homes in Mashiki. Local reports said one woman was rescued in a critical condition

Nokareshi•TWITTER Tweets have appeared showing the aftermath of the Japan quake today

Scientists say there has been an above average number of significant earthquakes across south Asia and the Pacific since the start of the year. The increased frequency has sparked fears of a repeat of the Nepal quake of 2015, where 8,000 people died, or even worse. Tonga suffered a 6.1 magnitude tremor. Thursday's quake in Japan was followed by a 5.9-magnitude earthquake which struck off the coast of the southern Philippines. The earthquake happened at 2.20am (Singapore time) off Mindanao island.

Catastrophic Natural Disasters Mon, October 17, 2016 The world has witnessed numerous disasters over the centuries and although most are man-made due to wars and terrorism, mother nature certainly dishes out her fair share of damage. Play slideshow Getty 1 of 62 Haiti earthquake: A fire ravages a building in Mexico City in the aftermath of the 8.1-magnitude earthquake that struck

Local authorities said there was no tsunami risk and that they had not received reports of casualties or damage. In Japan, a number of buildings were destroyed by the powerful 6.4 magnitude quake. Japan's Meteorological Agency said the epicentre was in the Mashiki town in the Kumamoto prefecture.

Officials said the region's nuclear facilities were not affected. A 6.0 magnitude earthquake also hit on Friday off the coast of the Pacific island of Vanuatu, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). It was 53 miles from town Port Orly and the fourth one this week in the immediate area, after a 6.4-strength tremor hit a week earlier. Vanuatu is on the "Pacific Ring of Fire," one of the most seismic parts of the globe and known for its earthquakes and volcanoes. Seismologists say the Himalayan region is overdue for a tremor stronger than Nepal's 7.9 strength quake last year. Friday's quakes take the total to nine across Asia in a period of just over three and a half months - nearly three every month.

Just six days ago, on April 10, six people died in Pakistan when a 6.6-magnitude quake hit Kabul with aftershocks in India Two days before, on April 8, there was a magnitude 4.2 earthquake in Nepal. Nepal had suffered a larger 5.5 magnitude one on February 22. A month before, on January 20, there was a 6.1-magnitude earthquake in China, and 16 days earlier 11 people died when a 6.7-magnitude earthquake hit Manipur in India.

Deadly Japan earthquake: Search for survivors continue Sun, April 17, 2016 A deadly earthquake, 6.4, has hit Southern Japan. With nine people confirmed dead, locals flee the area as they fear aftershocks and volcanoes. Play slideshow Getty 1 of 70 Police officers run on the debris as an earthquake warning is issued while rescue operation continues on April 16, 2016 in Minamiaso, Kumamoto

India's disaster management experts from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said in January an 8.2 magnitude quake was due in the already ruptured Himalayan region. The 2011 Sikkim earthquake created more rupturs in the Himalayas, on top of those caused by previous quakes, and scientists have feared the area is continually weakening with each new quake. India's National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM) says stress in the mountains of the north-east and the colliding of the Himalayan plate iand the Indo-Burmese plate in the to the puts the whole region on red alert.