An earthquake measuring 4.8 on the Richter Scale shook the metropolitan area of Guadalajara Wednesday afternoon, sending citizens running from their homes and workplaces.
According to the National Seismology Service, the tremor struck at 5:35 p.m. with its epicenter in the neighborhood of Nuevo Mexico, Tesistan, in the municipality of Zapopan. Its depth was recorded at 15 meters – shallow by most earthquake standards.
The tremor lasted around ten seconds and was felt throughout the metropolitan area. One man was slightly injured when he was struck by a stone ornament that fell from the arches at the entrance to the Zapopan Basilica. Otherwise, no injuries were reported.
“I was in my bedroom on the upper floor and could feel the whole house moving,” said Martha Estrada, a housewife in the Santa Margarita neighborhood of Zapopan. “I immediately thought back to the quake of 1986. It felt a lot like that one.”
State Civil Protection reported no serious damages, although cracks appeared in the facades of some old buildings and houses. The University of Guadalajara said 13 fissures had appeared in the famed Jose Clemente Orozco mural that adorns the cupola of the old rectory building, known as the Paraninfo. Cracks were also identified in buildings at other university campuses, Rector Tonatuih Padilla said.
Several public buildings in Guadalajara, Zapopan and Tonala presented fissures, including the new Corona Market in the city center.
A half-constructed house in the Santa Lucia neighborhood of Zapopan partially collapsed in the quake.
The Seismology Institute reported 17 aftershocks, although none were strong enough to be felt by the population.
Orderly evacuations took place in government buildings, schools, hospitals, offices and other edifices throughout the city. All schools opened as normal Thursday.
Rockfalls between kilometers 16-19 of the Guadalajara Saltillo highway disrupted traffic for a brief time.
Several residents in Ajijic told this newspaper that they felt a light tremor but thought little of it.