At least two people are dead after a 6.5 magnitude earthquake shook southern and central Mexico on Jan. 2, authorities said.
Mexico’s national seismological agency said the quake’s epicenter was in the state of Guerrero, less than three miles from the town of San Marcos. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said the earthquake occurred just before 8 a.m. local time, 2.5 miles north-northwest of Rancho Viejo, Guerrero, a mountain community roughly 57 miles northeast of the Pacific resort town of Acapulco.
Residents and tourists in Mexico City and Acapulco ran into the streets as they felt the ground shake, and seismic alarms rang out, interrupting President Claudia Sheinbaum’s first press conference of the year. It was also felt in other major cities such as Veracruz and Pueblo.
Mexico’s national seismological agency said more than 500 aftershocks followed.
Guerrero’s Gov. Evelyn Salgado said a 50-year-old woman died in the collapse of her home in a small community near the epicenter. Mexico City’s Mayor Clara Brugada said another person fell while evacuating a building and died after suffering an apparent medical emergency. Twelve people were reported injured.
Rescue teams responded immediately to the event, including more than 340 electrical workers. Authorities said in a statement that as of 2 p.m. local time, more than 30 medical units reported minor damage, and two units reported moderate damage. Landslides, collapsed walls, and downed trees and power lines were also reported, affecting multiple highways in the region. Power outages and gas leaks were also reported and addressed. Across Guerrero, 16 municipalities were affected.
While it occurred close to the Pacific coast, the U.S. tsunami warning system indicated there was no tsunami threat due to this quake.
“Located atop three of the large tectonic plates, Mexico is one of the world’s most seismically active regions,” the USGS said on its website. ”The relative motion of these crustal plates causes frequent earthquakes and occasional volcanic eruptions.”
“Mexico has a long history of destructive earthquakes and volcanic eruptions,” the survey added. ”In September 1985, a magnitude 8.0 earthquake killed more than 9,500 people in Mexico City. In southern Mexico, Volcán de Colima and El Chichón erupted in 2005 and 1982, respectively.”
