The quake shook the entire Andean country of 16 million people, causing panic as far away as the highland capital Quito and collapsing buildings and roads in several western towns hundreds of miles from the epicentre.

Vice President Jorge Glas said the death toll will likely rise further in what he called the 'worst seismic movement we have faced in decades'. He added: 'There are people trapped in various places, and we are starting rescue operations.' Ecuador's President Rafael Correa, rushing home from a trip to Italy, wrote on Twitter today: 'The immediate priority is to rescue people in the rubble… Everything can be rebuilt, but lives cannot be recovered, and that's what hurts the most.'

Coastal areas nearest the quake were worst affected, especially Pedernales, a rustic tourist spot with beaches and palm trees, where massive apartment blocks and buildings were completely flattened. There were reports of at least 163 aftershocks, mainly in the badly affected Pedernales area, and a state of emergency was declared in six provinces.