A magnitude 8.2 earthquake struck 100 kilometers off the coast of Chile at 7:46 p.m. ET, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The quake caused mass evacuations and widespread fears up and down the coast of South America.

Four men and one woman died; two suffered heart attacks and three were crushed, said Chile's Interior Minister Rodrigo Penailillo, according to a CNN report.

The quake's epicenter was under the sea floor about 62 miles northwest of Chile's northern coastal town of Iquique, according to the USGS.

Following the major seismic event, officials ordered a tsunami warning for Chile, Ecuador and Peru. The Pacifica Tsunami Warning Center also issued a tsunami watch for Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica and Nicaragua. This map shows the area surrounding Iquique:

On the Chilean government's Twitter page, authorities posted a notice to evacuate areas along the Chilean coast.

SHOA, establece Alerta de Tsunami. ONEMI solicita evacuar los sectores costeros del territorio nacional.

— onemichile (@onemichile) April 2, 2014

According to NBC Charlotte meteorologist Brad Panovich, Tuesday's quake is the biggest the planet has seen since May 24 of last year.

Tonight's M 8.2 is the biggest quake on the planet since the M 8.3 last May in Sea of Okhotsk off Russia.

— Brad Panovich (@wxbrad) April 2, 2014

To give a sense of the panic the quake caused, this video uploaded to YouTube on Tuesday night purportedly shows evacuation sirens warning in Antofagasta, Chile, which is about 300 miles south of Iquique.

And this photo from an Argentine news site reportedly shows evacuations in Iquique.

Foto de la exitosa evacuación en Iquique pic.twitter.com/fM6NsAHdou

— MDZ online (@mdzonline) April 2, 2014

Chileans living on the coast have begun evacuating en masse.

AHORA - Así evacúan costas de Chile ante Alarma de Tsunami. EN FOTOS: http://t.co/cjxBClLO1V pic.twitter.com/KLAYN4bhgs

— 24 Horas (@24HorasTVN) April 2, 2014

People evacuate bldgs. in #Antofagasta, #Chile, after powerful #earthquake strikes off coast: http://t.co/UaLUUfuPNw pic.twitter.com/z34WnRTrY2

— J✡dy Arringt✡n (@Jody_Arrington) April 2, 2014

Gente evacua en la serena pic.twitter.com/ovh74mUGu4

— Ruth Casanga (@RUTHCASANGA) April 2, 2014

"@edgardolazo: VALPARAÍSO Sector Portales #Valparaiso gente evacuando con mucho pánico#AlertaDeTsunami #SHOA pic.twitter.com/630DWelKr8"

— Red de Emergencia (@reddeemergencia) April 2, 2014

An NBC report from March 25 reported that officials had been wary of a large earthquake in the area for some time. "Chile's northern coast has been hit by more than 300 earthquakes in the past week in what seismologists warned Tuesday could be the precursor to a long-overdue disaster," the report said.

Iquique is a port town located around many of the copper-mining operations near Chile's northern border with Bolivia. However, none of Chile's main mining companies reported any significant damage to their facilities as of late Tuesday night, Reuters reported.

As news of the quake spread, the Twitter hashtag #PrayForChile became a worldwide trend. Users shared a wide range of messages:

#PrayForChile Fuerza Amigos nche triste para Argentina Blessings to all hugs :( merce

— Merce sanchez (@soy_merce) April 2, 2014

Just home and watching news. #PrayForChile Man, earthquakes seem to be everywhere. Hang in there guys.

— Pauley Perrette (@PauleyP) April 2, 2014

Bendiciones #PrayForChile

— Fernando Hernandez (@FeerNanO) April 2, 2014

This story is developing…

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