ChatDD Blog

TIJUANA, Mexico – A powerful earthquake swayed buildings from Los Angeles to Tijuana, killing two people in Mexico, blacking out cities, forcing the evacuation of hospitals and nursing homes, and prompting an Arizona border town to shut down its downtown area.

The 7.2-magnitude quake centered just south of the U.S. border near Mexicali was one of the strongest earthquakes to hit region in decades.

Sunday afternoon’s earthquake was felt the hardest in Mexicali, a bustling commerce center along Mexico’s border with California, where authorities said the quake was followed by at least 20 smaller aftershocks, including three of magnitudes 5.1, 4.5 and 4.3. The initial quake had a shallow depth of 10 kilometers (6 miles).