A magnitude 5.2 earthquake shook southern Mexico on Monday night, without the authorities yet having reported whether there are victims or material damage.
The earthquake had as its epicenter the town of Puerto Escondido, in the southern state of Oaxaca, about 500 kilometers from Mexico City, according to the National Seismological Service.
The authorities in the capital, where the seismic alert sent the population into a panic, announced that so far there are no victims or material damage.
“I am informed that so far no incidents have been reported after the low-magnitude earthquake,” the mayor of the capital, Claudia Sheinbaum, said on Twitter.
Dozens of people evacuated buildings upon hearing the alert, although the quake was not felt in the capital.
Most of these phenomena in Mexico originate in the Pacific, which has allowed the development of a seismic alert system in the center of the country.
With a thunderous sound, this alarm travels faster than seismic waves and warns of a major earthquake one minute on average before it occurs, allowing you to evacuate homes or find a safe area.
In 1985, an 8.1 magnitude earthquake rocked Mexico, leaving large parts of the capital in ruins. According to civil registry data, more than 10,000 people died in the megacity alone.
Meanwhile, on September 19, 2017, another 7.1 earthquake surprised Mexicans, leaving 369 deaths.