Strong quake off Mexican coast rattles Guatemala and El Salvador, but leaves no damage

MEXICO CITY: A powerful magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck off the coast of Mexico’s southernmost state of Chiapas on Friday, triggering localized tsunami warnings and shaking buildings as far away as Guatemala and El Salvador.

Despite the strength of the tremor, authorities in the region reported no immediate casualties or major infrastructural damage. Emergency protocols were quickly activated across the affected areas.

Tsunami Warning and Assessments

The earthquake initially registered as a magnitude 7.4 at a shallow depth of 10 kilometres, according to early estimates. However, the US Geological Survey (USGS) later revised the data, confirming the quake struck at a depth of 15.2km, with its epicenter located in the sea approximately 58km from the small coastal town of Puerto Madero.

Following the tremor, the US Tsunami Warning System issued an alert stating that hazardous waves were possible along coastlines within 300km of the epicenter. The warning center estimated that waves could reach heights of between 0.3 metres and 1 metre above tide levels for certain coastal stretches in Mexico and Guatemala.

Downplaying major risks, Mexican Secretary of the Navy Raymundo Morales stated during a government press conference that water levels were not expected to rise beyond half a metre. “There is no problem, no serious maritime impact,” Morales said, though he advised residents to stay away from beaches as a precautionary measure.

Regional Panic and Evacuations

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed that neither Chiapas nor the neighbouring state of Tabasco reported immediate issues. Similarly, Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo confirmed there were no fatalities in his country.

Nevertheless, the prolonged shaking caused widespread panic. In Guatemala City, office workers and residents evacuated high-rise buildings and gathered in the streets. Witnesses reported a series of aftershocks following the main tremor, with some registering magnitudes between 5 and 6, which were felt across Mexico, Guatemala, and El Salvador.

For many residents in Central America, the tremor revived anxieties of recent seismic disasters in the region. Local citizens drawing comparisons to the twin earthquakes that devastated Venezuela on June 24—where magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 tremors struck within a minute of each other—noted that the lingering memory of those events accelerated their decision to flee indoors as soon as Friday’s shaking began.