On the morning of this Friday, January 2, 2026, a strong earthquake of preliminary magnitude 6.5 shook central and southern Mexico, activating emergency protocols and seismic alerts in multiple states.
According to the National Seismological Service (SSN), the earthquake occurred at 07:58:15 hours, with the epicenter located 15 kilometers southwest of San Marcos, Guerrero, and a depth of 10 kilometers.
Evacuation in the National Palace
The tremor coincided with President Claudia Sheinbaum’s first morning conference of the year. When the alert sounded, the president interrupted her message and proceeded to evacuate the room following Civil Protection protocols. Minutes later, Sheinbaum reported that he maintained immediate communication with the governor of Guerrero, Evelyn Salgado, to evaluate possible effects.
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Damage and perception report
So far, the authorities of Mexico City and Guerrero report a white balance, although supervision tours are maintained.
Mexico City: Overflights of “Cóndores” helicopters were carried out without structural damage being detected. Only the fall of a tree was reported in the Benito Juárez mayor’s office.
Warrior: In the epicenter area (Costa Chica) and in Acapulco, the earthquake was felt “severely”, causing nervous breakdowns and the evacuation of hotels.
Other states: The earthquake was noticeable in Puebla, State of Mexico, Morelos, Oaxaca and parts of Jalisco.
Innovation in alert
This event marked one of the first large-scale uses of the Presidential Alert via mobile telephony (Cell Broadcast technology), which made the cell phones of citizens in the affected areas ring simultaneously with the public loudspeakers, allowing for a more agile evacuation.
The authorities urge the population to remain vigilant against possible aftershocks, since at least three minor movements have been recorded after the main event.
What a terrible scare! Strong earthquake shook Mexico: in videos you can see how everything was moving
#Earthquake Mexico City
This is how the Magnitude 6.5 Earthquake was experienced in the Mexico City Metro Facilities. @Claudiashein#Shaking #SeismicAlert pic.twitter.com/yODr2rLJHS
— ClarOscuro News (@ClarOscuroNews) January 2, 2026