Strong quake rocks Mexico’s Acapulco, damaging airport

A powerful earthquake struck Mexico’s Acapulco late on Tuesday, killing at least one man and damaging buildings including the control tower at the beach resort’s international airport.

The 7.0 magnitude quake, which hit 11 miles (17.7 km) northeast of Acapulco in southwestern Guerrero state, downed trees in hillsides around the holiday getaway.

In the airport tower, windows were broken and interior ceilings crashed to the floor, images on social media showed.

Large boulders tumbled onto roads in the quake, which caused power outages in several states and in Mexico City.

Another video on social media showed a cloudy night sky lit by lightning flashes as water sloshed from a hillside swimming pool in the city made famous by Hollywood stars in the 1950s.

Many people gathered in the streets amid aftershocks.

“We were only just checking into the hotel, so we have all our things with us,” said Jessica Arias, who was part of a group of eight visiting from Mexico City, the capital.

“They told us it’s still not safe to enter,” she added.

Others said they were having dinner or at the cinema when the quake hit.

“We were in shock. There were no earthquake alarms, so we felt it when it was already happening,” said Andrea del Valle, who was sitting on a pavement with her partner after rushing out of a cinema.

Guerrero state governor Hector Astudillo told local television that a man was killed by a falling post in Coyuca de Benitez, a small town just west of Acapulco.