Mexico rocked by powerful 7.3 earthquake, tsunami alert issued as tremors rattle Central America. Check viral videos

A powerful 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Mexico's southern state of Chiapas on Friday, triggering a tsunami warning and sending tremors across neighboring Guatemala and El Salvador. While authorities reported no immediate casualties or major damage, the strong quake revived memories of the country's long and tragic history with devastating earthquakes.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the earthquake struck at a depth of 15.2 km (9.4 miles) after the agency revised its earlier estimate of a 7.4-magnitude quake. The powerful tremor was followed by several aftershocks, including some measuring between magnitude 5 and 6, which were also felt across parts of Central America.




The U.S. Tsunami Warning System warned that hazardous tsunami waves could affect coastlines within 300 km (186 miles) of the epicenter. Waves between 0.3 metre and 1 metre above normal tide levels were possible along parts of the Mexican and Guatemalan coasts.


Mexico's Navy Secretary Raymundo Morales sought to reassure residents, saying water levels were not expected to rise by more than half a metre. "There is no problem, no serious maritime impact," Morales said, while advising people to stay away from beaches until the threat had passed.

A country that lives with earthquakes

Mexico is no stranger to powerful earthquakes. The country sits at the junction of five tectonic plates—the Cocos, North American, Pacific, Rivera and Caribbean plates—making it one of the most seismically active regions on Earth. It experiences tens of thousands of earthquakes every year, although most are too weak to be noticed.


The country's darkest chapter came on September 19, 1985, when a magnitude 8.0 earthquake devastated Mexico City. The disaster is believed to have killed more than 10,000 people, flattened thousands of buildings and transformed the nation's approach to disaster preparedness.

An eerie coincidence unfolded 32 years later, when another deadly 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck central Mexico on September 19, 2017—the same date as the 1985 catastrophe. The quake hit just hours after nationwide earthquake drills marking the earlier tragedy and claimed more than 360 lives.