Strong earthquake hits Mexico on the anniversary of the earthquake, at least one person was killed

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – A powerful earthquake struck western Mexico on Monday in memory of two devastating earthquakes, killing at least one person, damaging buildings, cutting power and sending Mexico City residents into the streets for safety.

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said in a video address that a person died in the Pacific port of Manzanillo after a wall collapsed in a store.

Just after 1 p.m. (1800 GMT), the 7.6-magnitude earthquake struck near the coast in the border region of Michoacan and Colima states at a depth of about 15 kilometers (9 miles), the US Geological Survey said.

Claudia Sheinbaum, Mayor of Mexico City, said there were no immediate reports of damage in the capital after the quakes swept through Mexico on the same day that major earthquakes struck the country in 1985 and 2017.

“It’s that date, there’s something about the 19th,” said Ernesto Lanzeta, a business owner in the city’s Cuauhtemoc neighborhood. The nineteenth is a day to be feared.

In an earlier message before the death was announced, Lopez Obrador said there was material damage in the areas near the epicenter. Pictures posted on social media showed severely damaged buildings.

Power was cut off in parts of the central Rome region, 400 kilometers (250 miles) from the epicenter. Locals stood cuddling pets on the street, while tourists visiting a local market with a local guide were visibly confused and upset.

Traffic lights have stopped working, people are holding on to their phones, sending text messages or waiting for calls.

Thousands were killed in the September 19, 1985 earthquake, and more than 350 were killed in the September 19, 2017 earthquake.

The US Pacific Tsunami Warning Center has issued a tsunami warning for parts of the coast of Mexico, saying that waves as high as one to three meters (3 to 9 feet) above tide level are possible.

Reporting by the Mexico City newsroom; Writing by Dave Graham; Editing by Stephen Eisenhamer and Sandra Mahler

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