Powerful earthquake hits Mexico’s southern coast
8.1 temblor kills dozens, triggers tsunami threat in Central America
“We have reports of some damage and the death of one person, even though we still don’t have exact details.” JIMMY MORALES GUATEMALAN PRESIDENT
A massive magnitude 8.1 earthquake rocked Mexico’s southern coast early Friday, killing dozens in what may be the strongest quake to strike the country in a century.
Mexican authorities confirmed that at least 58 people were killed. The temblor triggered a tsunami threat to several neighboring countries.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake’s epicenter was 102 miles west of Tapachula in southern Chiapas state, not far from Guatemala. It had a depth of about 22 miles.
President Enrique Pena Nieto said 62 aftershocks had been recorded. He also said the quake’s magnitude was slightly stronger, at 8.2, than the USGS readings, which would make it the largest to strike the country in 100 years, bigger than an 8.1 quake in 1985 that killed thousands and devastated large parts of Mexico City.
Friday’s quake struck off the coast of southern Mexico, toppling houses and causing buildings to sway violently 650 miles away in the country’s capital.
In Chiapas, the quake produced tsunami waves and sent people running into the streets in panic. Pena Nieto said that serious damage had been caused and that 1 million customers initially had been without power, but electricity had been restored to 800,000 of them.
The U.S. Tsunami Warning System said the earthquake was a potential tsunami threat to several Central American countries, including the Pacific coastlines of Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, El Salvador and Costa Rica. It said the threat was still being evaluated for Hawaii, Guam and other Pacific islands.
There was no tsunami threat for the West Coast of the United States.
Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales spoke on national television to call for calm while emergency crews checked for damage. Local radio in the Central American country reported one death, but it could not be confirmed.
“We have reports of some damage and the death of one person, even though we still don’t have exact details,” Morales said. He said the possible death occurred in San Marcos state near the border with Mexico.
Earthquakes in Mexico tend to strike in the southern states of Chiapas, Oaxaca and Guerrero, but they often make an impact in Mexico City, which was built on the soft soils of a lakebed.
The 1985 earthquake leveled large portions of Mexico City, but since then building codes have been tightened, and quake drills have become routine.
The quake came as Mexicans prepared for Hurricane Katia, which was projected to barrel into the country’s Gulf Coast early Saturday.