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Powerful aftershocks shook Peru today after a magnitude 8.0 earthquake throttled the nation the night before, killing at least 450 people and injuring more than 1,500, the United Nations said.

Roads were cut to the hard-hit southern region, officials said, hampering rescue efforts.

The death toll continued to rise as rescue workers dug beneath the rubble in the cities of Chincha and Pisco, near the epicenter off the Peruvian coast, 100 miles south of Lima, the capital.

The quake's magnitude was raised from 7.9 to 8.0 today by the U.S. Geological Survey. At least 15 aftershocks followed, some as strong as magnitude 6.3.

In New York, U.N. Assistant Secretary-General Margareta Wahlstrom said Peruvian authorities told her agency that the death toll had risen to 450.

Hospitals were struggling to keep up with the flow of injured, local media reported.

Many buildings were damaged in Pisco and Chincha, and residents were reported to be stunned and looking for help.

About 200 people were waiting to be treated at a quake-damaged hospital in Chincha.

"Our services are saturated and half of the hospital has collapsed," said Dr. Huber Malma, who was trying desperately to treat dozens of patients.

Large areas of Chincha were leveled. Dozens of homes, most of them built with adobe bricks, had collapsed.

In Pisco, about 125 miles south of the capital, the mayor told reporters that 200 or more people were buried in the rubble of a church, which collapsed when services were being held.

"The dead are scattered by the dozens on the streets," Mayor Juan Mendoza told Lima radio station CPN.

Peruvian media reported that several people were killed when the bell tower of an 18th century church toppled in Ica, about 150 miles south of Lima. Dozens more were injured when hospital buildings collapsed and power lines fell in Ica, leaving the city of 200,000 in darkness as emergency workers searched for victims.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake, which struck at 6:41 p.m. local time Wednesday, occurred on a historically active thrust fault about 25 miles below the Earth's surface. Two aftershocks measuring 5.9 and 5.8 on the Richter scale struck less than 30 minutes later.

Officials said the quake generated a 10-inch wave that quickly dissipated along the coast. Tsunami alerts were canceled in South and Central America, but an advisory remained in effect for Hawaii late Wednesday.

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