A powerful earthquake of magnitude of 7.0 struck near the coast in southern Peru's Arequipa region on Friday, local officials said, adding no deaths had been reported, Paralel.Az reports citing Reuters.

The Chief of Disaster Risk Management and National Defense at the Ministry of Health, David Aponte, informed local radio station RPP of only three minor injuries.

Following the earthquake, Arequipa was hit by four aftershocks of 4 to 4.6 magnitude, causing some landslides on local roads.

The government said on social media it was monitoring to assess the damage and "determine the actions to be taken".

The U.S. National Tsunami Warning Center had said there was a tsunami threat from the quake, adding waves of between 1 and 3 metres (9.84 ft) above the tide level had been recorded along some parts of Peru's coast.

Prime Minister Gustavo Adrianzen, however, said the tsunami warning on the coast of Arequipa had been discarded.

Ecuador and Peru are part of the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, an extensive area that surrounds the Pacific Ocean where clashes between the continental plates are frequent.