The General Secretariat of the Ecuadorean Bishops Conference announces a nationwide fund-raising campaign for the victims of the earthquake (magnitude of 7.8 on the Richter scale) which on Saturday night killed 246 people and injured 2,527 – not the final count yet – in the cities of Guayas, Manabí, Los Ríos, Santo Domingo and Santa Elena. Money can be donated for immediate needs to the bank account 3085358804 in the name of the Ecuadorean Bishops Conference (Ruc 1790100219001) at Pichincha Bank. In the meantime, as proof of solidarity from the neighbouring countries, several specialist rescue teams have been sent to the devastated region from Venezuela, Colombia and Mexico. They are over 1,200 volunteers who – as stated by Red Cross Ecuador – are still working in the area hit by the earthquake in the hope of finding people trapped under the rubble.