
HOTPEN – A strong earthquake shaked Mexico on Thursday, leaving two people dead as residents rushed out into the streets of the capital in the middle of the night days after another powerful tremor.
Authorities disclosed that, a woman died in Mexico City after falling down some stairs and hitting her head when the quake triggered early warning alarms, while the second victim suffered a heart attack.
The epicenter of the 6.9-magnitude earthquake was near the Pacific coast, 84 kilometers (52 miles) south of Coalcoman in the western state of Michoacan, the national seismological agency reported.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) estimated the magnitude at 6.8. It was the strongest of more than 1,200 aftershocks from a magnitude 7.7 quake that struck the same area on Monday, the national seismological agency said.
That tremor left two people dead in western Mexico, damaged several thousand buildings and sparked panic more than 400 kilometers away in Mexico City.
Many people quickly evacuated their homes when the alarms sounded, some still dressed in pajamas and carrying their pet dogs.
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador twitted that, the earthquake was also felt in Michoacan other states of Colima, Jalisco, Guerrero and Mexico City.
“So far there are no reports of damages in these cities after the earthquake” he tweeted.
Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said official helicopters had flown over the city and that there were no initial reports of destruction.
The quake hit at a depth of 12 kilometers, according to the national seismological agency, while the USGS estimated the depth at 24 kilometers, located about 410 kilometers from Mexico City.