A major earthquake of magnitude 7.1 struck central Mexico on Tuesday, killing at least 119 people in several states and toppling buildings in the heavily populated capital where rescuers searched frantically for survivors under the rubble.
Thousands of people ran out into the streets in panic, and millions lost electricity when the quake struck around lunchtime.
Sirens blared as first responders rushed through the streets of Mexico City. President Enrique Pena Nieto said 27 buildings had collapsed or partially collapsed there.
“People are really scared right now," said dentist Claudia Meneses who was in her clinic in Mexico City's Lindavista neighbourhood when the earthquake struck in the afternoon. “We’re going to go to a building that fell to see if we can help.”
Earthquakes of magnitude 7 or above are regarded as major and are capable of causing widespread heavy damage.
Initial reports showed the worst-hit area was the state of Morelos, just south of Mexico City. At least 54 people died there, according to a state official. Authorities reported other deaths in Mexico City, and in neighbouring Puebla and the State of Mexico.
Power was cut to 3.8 million customers, the national electricity company CFE said.
It was the second powerful earthquake to hit Mexico this month. Another quake on Sept. 7 in southern Mexico killed at least 98 people.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Twitter: "God bless the people of Mexico City. We are with you and will be there for you." The city, one of the world's most populous, and surrounding area are home to about 20 million people.
ILL-FATED DATE
The quake hit 32 years to the day since a devastating earthquake killed thousands in Mexico City in 1985. Many Mexicans had participated in earthquake drills around the nation on Tuesday as is customary every Sept. 19.
Dozens of police, rescue workers and neighbours dug through the wreckage of collapsed buildings in Mexico City.
At least one survivor was pulled from a collapsed building in the city's busy Condesa neighbourhood, and another person was rescued from a six-story apartment building nearby.
In Cuernavaca, a city in Morelos that is a popular destination for weekend visitors from Mexico City, there were reports on local radio of people trapped beneath collapsed buildings.
Mexican TV and social media showed cars crushed by debris.
"We got out really fast, leaving everything as it was and just left," said Rosaura Suarez, as she stood with a crowd on the street in Mexico City.
Mexican stocks and the peso currency dropped on news of the earthquake, and Mexico's stock exchange suspended trading.
The epicentre of Tuesday's quake was located in the central state of Puebla, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
Reuters
Tue Sep 19 2017
People clear rubble after an earthquake hit Mexico City, Mexico September 19, 2017. - REUTERS pic/Carlos Jasso
Kagame, menang 99.5 peratus pilihan raya Rwanda
Paul Kagame meneruskan khidmatnya buat penggal keempat berturut-turut sebagai Presiden Rwanda, selepas memenangi 99.15 peratus undi dalam pilihan raya negara itu.
Polis kerah lebih 300 anggota kawal perlawanan Piala FA
Seramai 351 anggota polis ditugaskan bagi mengawal perlawanan separuh akhir Piala FA antara Terengganu FC (TFC) dengan Selangor FC di Stadium Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin (SSMZA) Jumaat ini.
Dua warga AS antara yang ditemui maut di bilik hotel di Thailand
Jabatan Negara Amerika Syarikat ambil maklum mengenai laporan mengenai dua warganegaranya yang ditemui mati di sebuah hotel di Thailand.
EU tolak label UNRWA sebagai organisasi pengganas
Ketua Dasar Luar Kesatuan Eropah (EU), Josep Borrell mengulangi penolakan blok itu melabel Agensi Bantuan dan Kerja Bangsa-Bangsa Bersatu untuk Pelarian Palestin (UNRWA) sebagai organisasi pengganas.
Mengimbau sedekad tragedi MH17
Pesawat MH17 Malaysia Airlines ditembak jatuh di timur Ukraine sejurus berlepas dari Lapangan Terbang Schiphol di Amsterdam, mengorbankan kesemua 283 penumpang dan 15 anak kapal di dalamnya.
Tragedi yang berlaku pada 17 Julai 2014 itu, kini memasuki tahun ke-10 kejadiannya.
Tragedi yang berlaku pada 17 Julai 2014 itu, kini memasuki tahun ke-10 kejadiannya.
Kerajaan teliti kaedah baharu lantikan tetap, pastikan kewangan negara lebih mampan
Kerajaan sedang meneliti kaedah baharu lantikan tetap bagi memastikan pengurusan kewangan negara yang lebih mampan.
PDRM gerak unit skuba forensik, K9 cari telefon, rantai Nur Farah Kartini hari ini
Proses mencari bahan bukti akan dimulakan sekitar jam 9 pagi di kawasan parit berhampiran ladang kelapa sawit berkenaan.
Bangkai pesawat MH17 tanpa sayap imbau kekejaman tragedi menyayat hati
Keadaan serpihan pesawat MH17 Malaysia Airlines (MAS) yang cuba dibina semula tanpa sayap, tayar, ekor dan tempat duduk penumpang cukup menggerunkan sekali gus mengingatkan pada kekejaman yang meragut
VOP akan diselesaikan dalam tempoh sebulan - Ahmad
Pelaksanaan Syarat Perubahan Harga (VOP) susulan penyasaran subsidi diesel dijangka diselesaikan dalam tempoh sebulan lagi, kata Timbalan Menteri Kerja Raya Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan.
Industri minyak sawit disaran guna semula sisa untuk bahan api penerbangan mampan - Liew
Industri minyak sawit perlu mengkaji penggunaan semula sisa sebagai stok suapan penting untuk bahan api penerbangan mampan (SAF), di luar penggunaan tradisional minyak sawit.
Indonesia rattled by 7.6 magnitude quake, tsunami warning lifted
Indonesia was struck by a 7.6 magnitude earthquake on Tuesday off the Tanimbar islands, prompting panicked residents to flee their homes, although a tsunami warning was lifted after three hours.
Gempa Sulawesi: 45 maut, ratusan lagi cedera
Pasukan penyelamat hari ini mencari dan menyelamat mangsa-mangsa yang dikhuatiri tertimbus.
Gempa bumi 5.8 magnitud gegar Filipina, 51 cedera
Sekurangnya 51 orang cedera manakala beberapa rumah, gereja dan bangunan musnah dalam gempa bumi berukuran magnitud 5.8 yang menggegarkan selatan Filipina pagi Sabtu.
Mangsa gempa warga Malaysia di Taiwan meninggal dunia
Choo Yip Chean meninggal dunia berpunca daripada kecederaan akibat gempa bumi di Taroko Gorge National Park pada 18 April lalu.
Gempa Osaka: Tiga maut termasuk kanak-kanak
Mereka yang maut adalah seorang kanak-kanak perempuan 9 tahun dan dua lelaki warga emas.
Osaka earthquake: Three dead, more than 10 injured
An elderly man and a young girl were killed, with several others in "cardiopulmonary arrest", after walls collapsed in a magnitude-6.1 earthquake in Osaka.
Major quake cuts communications, halts oil and gas operations in Papua New Guinea
At least one company began evacuating non-essential personnel after a powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake hit Papua New Guinea's energy-rich interior on Monday.
MOSTI bangunkan standard reka bentuk bangunan tahan gempa
Standard yang dibangunkan ini akan menyediakan garis panduan kepada pihak berkuasa tempatan berkenaan reka bentuk struktur bangunan yang tahan kepada gempa bumi,- jelas kenyataan itu.
No Malaysians affected in Iran's quake
The Embassy of Malaysia in Tehran informed that no Malaysian were reported to be present at the earthquake hit area.
Selebriti dunia lahir rasa simpati terhadap mangsa gempa Nepal
Laman sosial menjadi medan reaksi para selebriti mengenai bencana gempa bumi yang melanda Nepal