7.4 Earthquake Oaxaca, Mexico

 

• This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.

Magnitude	7.4
Date-Time	Tuesday, March 20, 2012 at 18:02:48 UTC Tuesday, March 20, 2012 at 12:02:48 PM at epicenter Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location	16.662°N, 98.188°W
Depth	20 km (12.4 miles)
Region	OAXACA, MEXICO
Distances	136 km (84 miles) SSW of Huajuapan de Leon, Oaxaca, Mexico 162 km (100 miles) WSW of Oaxaca, Oaxaca, Mexico 170 km (105 miles) SE of Chilpancingo, Guerrero, Mexico 322 km (200 miles) SSE of MEXICO CITY, D.F., Mexico
Location Uncertainty	horizontal +/- 15.8 km (9.8 miles); depth +/- 6.5 km (4.0 miles)
Parameters	NST=438, Nph=440, Dmin=312.8 km, Rmss=0.88 sec, Gp= 79°, M-type=teleseismic moment magnitude (Mw), Version=9
Source	Magnitude: USGS NEIC (WDCS-D) Location: USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)

 

Mexico City (CNN) -- A strong earthquake rattled residents in southern 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 7.4.

The epicenter was about 15 miles (25 kilometers) east of Ometepec, Guerrero, the USGS said, and its depth was about 12.4 miles (20 km).

More than an hour after the quake, residents of town were feeling aftershocks, said Francisca Villalva Davila, the city's comptroller.

The USGS initially reported the magnitude of the quake at 7.9, but later revised that figure downward. Mexican President Felipe Calderon said in a Twitter post it was 7.8.

Residents rushed into the streets after feeling the temblor in Mexico City, about 200 miles (320 km) away from the epicenter. Tourists and residents also felt the earthquake in the resort city of Acapulco.

Calderon said that there were no immediate reports of serious damage, and that the nation's health system was operating normally.

"There are some broken windows, much fear, much panic," he said.

Residents in the southwestern states of Oaxaca and Guerrero and the eastern state of Veracruz reported that phone service had been knocked out.

Multiple houses collapsed in the Ometepec area, but officials have no reports of deaths or injuries, Guerrero state Gov. Angel Aguirre told CNN affiliate Televisa.

Government helicopters were surveying the area, he said, and officials were preparing shelters for displaced residents, he said.

Authorities in Mexico City were surveying buildings, schools and hospitals to evaluate damage, Mayor Marcelo Ebrard said.

A pedestrian bridge fell on a minibus during the quake, he said, but there were no injuries.

Some buildings had cracks and broken windows, he said in a Twitter post.

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.