Two killed in Mexican ‘anniversary’ earthquake

TWO people died and dozens of buildings were damaged by a powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck Mexico on the anniversary of two previous tremors, authorities said yesterday.

A woman died after she was hit by a falling wall and a man was killed by falling debris in a shopping centre, both in the city of Manzanillo in the western state of Colima.

Nine others were injured across Colima, where more than 150 buildings were damaged as a result of Monday’s earthquake, officials said.

The quake struck less than an hour after millions of people in Mexico City participated in emergency drills on the anniversary of two previous disasters.

The tremors caused buildings to shake and sway in the capital. “It was very scary. I thought: on the 19th again, it can’t be,” said Laura Plaza, a retired teacher.

On Sept 19 1985, an 8.1 magnitude earthquake killed more than 10,000 people and destroyed hundreds of buildings. On the same date in 2017, a 7.1 quake left about 370 dead, mainly in the capital.

The timing of Monday’s tremor was a coincidence, according to the national seismological agency. “There is no scientific reason to explain it,” it added.

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said it was only luck that the death toll was not higher. “It was a tremor of considerable intensity,” he said.

The epicentre of the quake was located near the Pacific coast, around 250 miles west of the capital, according to seismologists. The depth was estimated at nine miles.