Mexico rocked by 6.5 magnitude quake, 2 killed, hundreds of homes damaged

A strong earthquake struck southern and central Mexico on Friday afternoon local time, simultaneously interrupting President Claudia Sheinbaum’s first press conference of the new year in Mexico City. As seismic alarms sounded, she paused briefly and assured the public, “Our priority is the safety of the population,” emphasizing that federal authorities were coordinating closely with state and local governments to monitor aftershocks, assess damage, and support emergency operations. The 6.5 magnitude tremor left at least two people dead and caused widespread damage in the southern state of Guerrero.

Mexico’s national seismological agency said the earthquake occurred in the early afternoon with its epicenter near the town of San Marcos in southern Guerrero, close to the Pacific coast resort of Acapulco . More than 500 aftershocks were recorded in the hours that followed. The United States Geological Survey said the quake struck at a depth of about 35 kilometres , roughly 2.5 miles north northwest of Rancho Viejo, a mountainous area around 57 miles northeast of Acapulco. Seismologists said the earthquake was caused by movement along a subduction zone where the Cocos tectonic plate is pushing beneath the North American plate, one of the most seismically active regions in Mexico.

Guerrero Governor Evelyn Salgado said a 50 year old woman living in a small community near the epicenter was killed when her house collapsed. Authorities also reported major structural damage to a hospital in Chilpancingo, the state capital, forcing the evacuation of patients as a precaution. The state civil defence agency said landslides were reported around Acapulco and on several highways, damaging roads and disrupting access to some areas. Officials said hundreds of homes across multiple communities were damaged , though full assessments were still under way.

Rescue and emergency operations were launched within minutes of the quake. Civil defence teams, firefighters and police searched damaged homes in rural areas near San Marcos and secured unstable structures. Medical evacuations were prioritised following the damage to the Chilpancingo hospital, while road crews worked to clear landslides and restore access for ambulances and relief vehicles. Communications were disrupted in parts of the Costa Chica region, complicating rescue and assessment efforts.

In Mexico City and Acapulco, residents and tourists rushed into the streets as buildings shook. Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada confirmed a second death in the capital, saying a person suffered an apparent medical emergency and then fell while evacuating a building. She said inspections were being carried out across the city and no major building collapses had been reported.

José Raymundo Díaz Taboada, a doctor and human rights defender living on a hill overlooking Acapulco, said he heard a loud rumbling sound before the shaking began. “The seismic alert went off on my phone, and then the shaking felt strong with a lot of noise,” he said. While he described the tremor as lighter than some previous earthquakes, he prepared an emergency backpack and said he was unable to contact some friends living southeast of Acapulco due to communication disruptions.