The most powerful earthquake to hit Mexico in almost a century has left at least 61 people dead, reduced buildings to rubble, injured hundreds and forced mass evacuations.
The 8.1 magnitude earthquake - the epicentre of which lay around 40 miles off the country’s southern coast - hit late on Thursday night.
Much of the most serious damage has affected the poverty-stricken town of Juchitan in the region of Oaxaca, with Reuters reporting that the town hall, a hotel, a church, bars and a number of homes have all been seriously damaged.
According to officials, more than 250 people in the region were injured in the quake.
A huge rescue operation is now underway, with fears that many could still be trapped under collapsed buildings.
The town’s mayor Gloria Sanchez, called it “the most terrible moment” in the area’s history.
Yesterday, scores of people in Juchitan planned to sleep outdoors in parks and in the streets over fears that aftershocks could cause even more destruction.
A woman named Alma Rosa, who sat in the street by the body of a loved one, told Reuters: “We went to buy a coffin, but there aren’t any because there are so many bodies.”
Mexico’s President Pena Nieto, who flew to Juchitan to oversee rescue efforts, said that the quake was felt by around 50 million of the country’s population of 120 million.
Not only did the huge quake trigger a minor tsunami in the nearby state of Chiapas - sparking mass evacuations - but airport windows shattered in Mexico City and power outages in the capital affected more than a million people.
Tremors from the incident were also felt in Guatemala and El Salvador, with alerts triggered as far away as southeast Asia.
Thursday’s temblor was even stronger than the devastating 1985 earthquake which flattened swathes of Mexico City and killed thousands.
The following photos offer a glimpse of destruction caused by Thursday’s earthquake.
