Strong tremors of an earthquake of 6.5 magnitude were felt in Mexico City, the capital of the South American country Mexico, on Friday. According to the National Seismological Service, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum was giving a New Year's press conference when the earthquake struck, which had to be interrupted. Two people have died due to the earthquake.
According to Mexico's national seismological agency, the earthquake had a magnitude of 6.5 and its epicenter was near the town of San Marcos in the southern state of Guerrero, near the resort city of Acapulco on the Pacific coast. More than 500 aftershocks occurred after the earthquake.
The state civil protection agency reported several landslides around Acapulco and on other highways in the state. Guerrero Governor Evelyn Salgado said a 50-year-old woman who lived in a small community near the epicenter died after her house collapsed. Officials also said that a hospital in Chilpancingo, the capital of Guerrero, was heavily damaged and many patients were evacuated.
Residents and tourists of Mexico City and Acapulco ran into the streets as soon as the earthquake began. Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada said one person died after suffering a sudden medical emergency after falling while evacuating a building.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake struck 2.5 miles north-northwest of Rancho Viejo, Guerrero, in the mountains about 57 miles northeast of Acapulco, at a depth of 21.7 miles (35 kilometers). Sheinbaum resumed his press briefings shortly after the earthquake.
José Raymundo Díaz Taboada, a doctor and human rights defender who lives on one of the peaks around Acapulco, said he heard a loud rumble and all the dogs in the neighborhood started barking. He said that at that very moment an earthquake alert came on my mobile phone and then I started feeling strong vibrations.
He said the shaking was mild compared to some previous earthquakes and he had prepared a bag full of essential items so that he could quickly evacuate during the subsequent aftershocks. He said he was unable to contact some friends living along the Costa Chica coast, southeast of Acapulco, due to a communications blackout.
