A powerful earthquake rocked the southwestern part of Mexico late Tuesday, with tremors felt as far as Mexico City and causing at least one death.
According to the United States Geological Survey, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) east-northeast of Los Órganos de San Agustín, approximately eight miles from the resort city of Acapulco in the Pacific Coast. The Mexican State Civil Protection says at least 92 aftershocks were recorded from the quake that measured at an initial depth of 7.8 miles (12.6 kilometers). One of the aftershocks had a magnitude of 5.2.
Alarms went off shortly before the ground tremors were felt in Mexico City. A tsunami warning was announced by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration but was later retracted.
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The single reported fatality is from the Mexican state of Guerrero, where a 19-year-old man, Eliodoro Hurtado was killed.
No initial significant damage in the capital, 231 miles (372 kilometers) from the epicenter, were reported according to Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum. Sheinbaum shared on social media that the authorities are working to restore power after many people have lost electricity. Train services in the city had also resumed after the city’s metro service’s safety inspection.
The Federal Electricity Commission (CFE), the country’s state-owned utility service, says an estimated 1.6 million customers lost power in Mexico City and the other four states. CFE adds that they are working to bring back the electricity in the affected areas.
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Mexico is located at the edge of the North American tectonic plate, making it prone to earthquakes. Powerful earthquakes struck the country in the past, notably in September 2017 and on September 19, 1985, where approximately 9,500 people died in Mexico City and surrounding areas from a magnitude 8.0 tremor. The tragedy left the city devastated but paved the way for more improved building codes and stricter earthquake protection efforts.
No major damage was reported in Guerrero state, the epicenter’s location of Tuesday’s quake, according to President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.
However, reports of falling rocks have been received by the authorities, Lopez Obrador said. Stay tuned with us to get more latest and updated news from our experience jounrlaists.