Major earthquake rocks southern Mexico, killing at least six
- Hundreds of aftershocks reported in the hours following the initial tremor, which was felt in Mexico City, some 700km from epicentre
- Quake hit at a time when Mexico is already reeling from the coronavirus pandemic
A powerful earthquake of magnitude 7.4 struck southern Mexico’s Pacific coast on Tuesday, killing at least six people and cutting off isolated villages, and causing tremors hundreds of kilometres away in Mexico City.
The fatalities were near the quake’s epicentre in Oaxaca, a mountainous state known for its coffee, mescal and Spanish colonial architecture.
Rockfalls blocked the winding mountain roads between the state capital of Oaxaca city and the coast. A clinic and other buildings in hill villages near the epicentre were severely damaged, images on social media showed.
The dead included a worker from state oil company Pemex, who suffered a bad fall, Mexico’s civil protection agency said. Pemex was forced to briefly close the country’s biggest oil refinery in Oaxaca.
Buildings hundreds of miles away in Mexico City shook strongly and people ran out into the streets when an early warning seismic alarm sounded. Two people were injured and more than 30 buildings in the capital suffered damage, officials said.