Acapulco, Mexico – A 7.1-magnitude earthquake killed Mexico on Tuesday near the Pacific resort city of Acapulco, leaving at least one person dead and shaking buildings in the capital nearly 250 kilometers away. The epicenter was located seven miles southeast of Acapulco, in the state of Guerrero, according to the National Seismological Service.
A man was killed when a utility pole fell on him in the nearby town of Coyuca de Benítez, Guerrero state governor Hector Astudillo told Milenio TV.
But President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said in a video message that there were no reports of significant destruction.
“The epicenter was recorded in Acapulco, Guerrero. Fortunately there is no damage in this state, nor significant damage,” he said.
According to an AFP correspondent, utility poles and other wreckage fell on several vehicles in Acapulco and the facade of a church collapsed.
Tourists evacuated hotels while dozens of aftershocks, including at least eight of magnitude 4 or higher, shook their nerves.
“I was taking a bath and suddenly I felt a very loud movement and then I got scared and screamed,” said a tourist from Mexico City who fled outside with only a bath towel.
“I came with my mom and we’re on the 11th floor of the hotel,” she said, hugging her 86-year-old mother, who was crying.
Acapulco Mayor Adela Roman said the quake caused “nervous crises” in the city.
“People are worried because there are aftershocks.”
He said “many gas leaks” had been detected in residential areas.
Acapulco authorities opened sports centers so people could sleep if they were afraid to return home.
A church in the city of Chilpancingo offered shelter to families evacuated from homes that suffered structural damage, Guerrero Civil Defense Service said.
The quake was felt strongly in some areas of Mexico City, causing residents and tourists to scatter on the street from homes and hotels.
“I’m very scared. I don’t know if I’ll sleep tonight. I’m worried about my daughter. I woke her up to take her outside and I didn’t even put on my shoes,” said 49- Laura Villa, a one-year-old resident.
There were no immediate reports of serious damage to the capital, Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said on Twitter.
He added that several neighborhoods were left without electricity and the power plant was working to restore it as soon as possible.
During the earthquake, flashes of light in the sky over the capital were seen, affecting at a time when Mexico was facing a third wave of Covid-19 infections, as well as severe flooding in some areas.
Bordered by the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, Mexico is one of the most seismically active places in the world, located above five tectonic plates, including three major ones.
On September 19, 1985, a magnitude 8.1 earthquake in Mexico City killed more than 10,000 people and destroyed hundreds of buildings.
On the anniversary of that 2017 earthquake, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake left about 370 people dead, mostly in the capital.