One killed as 7.1-magnitude quake shakes S Mexico (Lead)

Mexico City, Sep 8 (IANS) At least one person was killed after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake hit the southern Mexican coastal city of Acapulco in Guerrero state on Tuesday night, officials said.Tremors were felt hundreds of kilometres away in the Mexican capital as buildings rocked and swayed in Mexico City, Xinhua news agency reported on Wednesday.The National Seismological Service reported via Twitter that the earthquake occurred at 8.47 p.m. local time (0147 GMT Wednesday) 11 km southwest of Acapulco, with a depth of 10 km.A man was killed after a light pole fell on him in the municipality of Coyuca de Benitez, Guerrero State Governor Hector Astudillo Flores told local television.The Civil Protection Agency of the state said the quake has led to rock falls and landslides on roads.Authorities reported no major damage in Guerrero and the neighbouring regions of Michoacan, Jalisco, Mexico City or other areas.In Mexico City, people rushed to the streets as the quake was felt strongly, followed by power outages.Elsa Ramirez, an informal trader, was on her way home when she heard the seismic alarm."It was very strong, what a scare! I thought the light cables on top were going to fall off," she told Xinhua while taking shelter outside a shop.The city's mayor Claudia Sheinbaum asked residents to stay calm via her social networks."There have been three flyovers and no damage has been found. I just spoke with the president and gave him this information. We know that there are many places without electricity, I ask everyone to be very calm," she said.The earthquake was located at the coordinates north latitude 16.78 degrees and west longitude minus 99.93 degrees, specified the agency dependent on the Institute of Geophysics of the National Autonomous University of Mexico.Mexico is in an area of high seismicity due to the interaction of five tectonic plates: the North American plate, the Cocos plate, the Pacific plate, the Rivera plate, and the Caribbean plate.
--IANS int/shs/bg