Series of 6 quakes strikes in storm-stricken Mexico

MEXICO CITY – A series of at least six earthquakes – two reaching at least 5.0- magnitude – struck Sunday in the Mexican state of Guerrero, which is still reeling from deadly tropical storms last month.

The epicenter of the strongest quake – 5.21-magnitude, at 9:27 local time (1527 GMT), according to the National Seismological Service – was located in the mountainous area where a September 16 mudslide buried a whole town.

“We are monitoring the areas affected by the recent rains because the soil is moist and that can generate problems” from the trembling, said Jose Luis Serna, civil protection director of the town nearest the epicenter, Coyuca de Benitez.

“But so far, we have no news,” he said.

The quakes were also felt with moderate intensity in the resort town of Acapulco, which is recovering from the massive flooding brought on when storms Ingrid and Manuel swept across the country in mid-September.

Authorities recommended moving “away from risk areas, such as slopes and where there are cracks in the ground,” Guerrero governor Angel Aguirre said in his Twitter account.

Tourists in Acapulco were evacuated from hotels to the Costera Miguel Aleman, the port town’s main tourist road.

All six quakes were recorded between 9:00 am local time (1500 GMT) and 10:36 am (1636 GMT), and so far no damage has been reported in Guerrero state.

One of the quakes, of 5.0-magnitude, prompted seismic alarms in Mexico City, some 300 kilometers (186 miles) away – though the shaking was virtually imperceptible in most parts of the capital.

No damage was reported there, according to a statement from public security authorities.

The death toll from the tropical storms last month has reached 147, with 53 people still missing, and 1.5 million homes damaged.