- Joined
- Mar 12, 2009
- Messages
- 13,160
- Points
- 0
Two dead in Mexico after big quake near US border
AFP - Tuesday, April 6
Officials examine a crack in the road between Tijuana and Mexicali. Emergency teams scrambled to assess damage after a major 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit northwestern Mexico, killing two people and rocking buildings as far away as Los Angeles.
MEXICALI, Mexico (AFP) - – Emergency teams scrambled Monday to assess damage after a major 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit northwestern Mexico, killing two people and rocking buildings as far away as Los Angeles.
Sunday's earthquake jolted millions of in a wide area including Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas and Phoenix, Arizona in the United States.
Most of the damage and injuries were centered in and around the Mexican border city of Mexicali, where two people were reported dead and around 100 injured.
Dozens of aftershocks also rattled the region, including a 5.1 magnitude temblor late Sunday in southern California about one kilometer (less than a mile) west northwest of Imperial, California, the US Geological Survey (USGS) reported.
A 4.9 magnitude aftershock struck early Monday, centered about 18 kilometers (11 miles) southwest of Seeley, California.
The quake left a scene of destruction in Mexicali, which is the capital of Baja California state, some 60 kilometers (38 miles) from the epicenter.
Officials and witnesses reported toppled buildings, cracked roads, ruptured water canals, downed telephone polls and power outages. An undetermined number of homes, offices and hospitals were also damaged.
Of the two fatalities in Mexico, one man was killed when his home collapsed on top of him, Mexican rescue workers told AFP. Another man died when he was crushed by a falling wall in Mexicali, Baja California Governor Jose Guadalupe Osuna said.
There were no immediate reports of deaths on the US, allowing residents of California, Arizona and Nevada who live in perpetual fear of "The Big One" -- the massive and probably deadly earthquake seismologists predict will hit the region sometime in the future -- to breathe a sigh of relief.
Still, the worst may not be over, with experts warning another quake could hit in the coming days.
"Each earthquake we have triggers a chance for a bigger earthquake in the next few days," California Institute of Technology seismologist Lucy Jones said.
Osuna declared a state of emergency in Mexicali, a major metropolitan hub of 900,000 inhabitants. Classes were suspended indefinitely.
"This is a large quake with the potential of causing damage because it is not far from a population center," said Carlos Valdez, director of the National Seismological Service.
A firefighter at a station just outside Mexicali told the Los Angeles Times that fires caused by the quake destroyed at least six homes after damaging propane tanks and severing electricity lines.
Several homes near the Cerro Prieto volcano some 31 kilometers (19 miles) from the quake's epicenter sank into the ground as water rose around them, according to the firefighter, Oscar Silas.
US and Mexican seismological services said the quake, which struck at 3:40 pm (2240 GMT), was shallow with a depth of just 10 kilometers (six miles). It was centered 26 kilometers (16 miles) southwest of Guadalupe Victoria in Baja California.
The major temblor was the third in as many months to strike the Americas -- a January 12 earthquake of magnitude 7.0 killed an estimated 230,000 people in Haiti and in Chile, a massive 8.8-quake on February 27 left an estimated 452 people dead in one of the most powerful quakes ever.
The USGS said the quake was felt as far away as Las Vegas, some 460 kilometers (290 miles) from the epicenter, as well as in Los Angeles, 360 kilometers (224 miles) away, and in Phoenix, 300 kilometers (186 miles) away.
AFP - Tuesday, April 6
Officials examine a crack in the road between Tijuana and Mexicali. Emergency teams scrambled to assess damage after a major 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit northwestern Mexico, killing two people and rocking buildings as far away as Los Angeles.
MEXICALI, Mexico (AFP) - – Emergency teams scrambled Monday to assess damage after a major 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit northwestern Mexico, killing two people and rocking buildings as far away as Los Angeles.
Sunday's earthquake jolted millions of in a wide area including Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas and Phoenix, Arizona in the United States.
Most of the damage and injuries were centered in and around the Mexican border city of Mexicali, where two people were reported dead and around 100 injured.
Dozens of aftershocks also rattled the region, including a 5.1 magnitude temblor late Sunday in southern California about one kilometer (less than a mile) west northwest of Imperial, California, the US Geological Survey (USGS) reported.
A 4.9 magnitude aftershock struck early Monday, centered about 18 kilometers (11 miles) southwest of Seeley, California.
The quake left a scene of destruction in Mexicali, which is the capital of Baja California state, some 60 kilometers (38 miles) from the epicenter.
Officials and witnesses reported toppled buildings, cracked roads, ruptured water canals, downed telephone polls and power outages. An undetermined number of homes, offices and hospitals were also damaged.
Of the two fatalities in Mexico, one man was killed when his home collapsed on top of him, Mexican rescue workers told AFP. Another man died when he was crushed by a falling wall in Mexicali, Baja California Governor Jose Guadalupe Osuna said.
There were no immediate reports of deaths on the US, allowing residents of California, Arizona and Nevada who live in perpetual fear of "The Big One" -- the massive and probably deadly earthquake seismologists predict will hit the region sometime in the future -- to breathe a sigh of relief.
Still, the worst may not be over, with experts warning another quake could hit in the coming days.
"Each earthquake we have triggers a chance for a bigger earthquake in the next few days," California Institute of Technology seismologist Lucy Jones said.
Osuna declared a state of emergency in Mexicali, a major metropolitan hub of 900,000 inhabitants. Classes were suspended indefinitely.
"This is a large quake with the potential of causing damage because it is not far from a population center," said Carlos Valdez, director of the National Seismological Service.
A firefighter at a station just outside Mexicali told the Los Angeles Times that fires caused by the quake destroyed at least six homes after damaging propane tanks and severing electricity lines.
Several homes near the Cerro Prieto volcano some 31 kilometers (19 miles) from the quake's epicenter sank into the ground as water rose around them, according to the firefighter, Oscar Silas.
US and Mexican seismological services said the quake, which struck at 3:40 pm (2240 GMT), was shallow with a depth of just 10 kilometers (six miles). It was centered 26 kilometers (16 miles) southwest of Guadalupe Victoria in Baja California.
The major temblor was the third in as many months to strike the Americas -- a January 12 earthquake of magnitude 7.0 killed an estimated 230,000 people in Haiti and in Chile, a massive 8.8-quake on February 27 left an estimated 452 people dead in one of the most powerful quakes ever.
The USGS said the quake was felt as far away as Las Vegas, some 460 kilometers (290 miles) from the epicenter, as well as in Los Angeles, 360 kilometers (224 miles) away, and in Phoenix, 300 kilometers (186 miles) away.
