Mexico: 7, 6 quake hits near Acapulco

Uploaded by gvsgibson on Mar 20, 2012

A strong, long 7.6 earthquake with an epicenter in Guerrero state shook central southern Mexico on Tuesday.

A strong earthquake rattled residents in Mexican resort towns and the nation's capital Tuesday, but there were no immediate reports of serious damage or injuries.
The U.S. Geological Survey reported the quake had a magnitude of 7.6, while Mexican President Felipe Calderon said in a Twitter post it was 7.8..
The epicenter was about 15 miles (25 km) east of Ometepec, Guerrero, the USGS said, and its depth was about 11 miles (17 km).
The agency earlier reported the magnitude of the quake at 7.9, but later revised that figure.
Residents rushed into the streets after feeling the temblor in Mexico City. Tourists and residents also felt the earthquake in the resort city of Acapulco.
Local authorities in Guerrero state reported aftershocks.
Calderon said in another Twitter post that there were no immediate reports of serious damage.
Residents in the southwestern states of Oaxaca and Guerrero and the eastern state of Veracruz reported that phone service had been knocked out in their areas.
In Mexico City, Mayor Marcelo Ebrard sent tweets saying that there was no visible damage in the capital and that the sprawling city's strategic services and water system were functioning. Regardless, he tweeted, numerous buildings were being evacuated.
Earthquakes are a frightening experience for the more than 20 million residents of Mexico City, where about 10,000 people perished in a massive quake in 1985.
The city, built on volcanic ash and clay, is particularly vulnerable to temblors.

MEXICO CITY - A strong, long 7.6 earthquake with an epicenter in Guerrero state shook central southern Mexico on Tuesday, followed by an aftershock that shook central southern Mexico, swayed buildings in Mexico City and sent frightened workers and residents into the streets.

The U.S. Geological Survey set the intensity at 7.6 on the Richter scale and said the epicenter was 11 miles underground. Mexico's National Seismological Survey said the temblor had an epicenter southwest of Ometepec.

Mexico City Mayor Marcelo Ebrard's Twitter account said the water system and other "strategic services" were not experiencing problems.

But frightened workers and residents poured into the streets of the capital just minutes after noon local time (18:02 GMT).

President Felipe Calderon said there were no immediate reports of damage through his Twitter account. Telephone service was down in the city and throughout the area where the quake was felt.

I have problems with pressure, I felt I was going to faint," said Rosa Maria Lopez Velazquez, 62, outside a mall in Mexico City.

An unidentified woman who answered the phone at the General Hospital in Putla Villa de Guerrero, a small town near the epicenter, told CBS News that there were a few people entering with minor injuries, none life threatening. The modern hospital suffered minor damages but is open and running with electricity, according to the woman.

The quake was felt in southern Oaxaca state next to the epicenter in Guerrero.

It was very strong, but we didn't see anything fall," said Irma Ortiz, who runs a guesthouse in Oaxaca. She said their telephones are down, and that the quake shook them side-to-side.