Civil defense teams dug through demolished buildings today after a strong earthquake rattled western Mexico, killing at least 24 people, officials said.
The quake measured about 7.6 on the Richter scale and caused widespread panic in a country that has still not forgotten a 1985 earthquake which left 20,000 dead.
According to an official toll, 21 people were killed and at least 140 were injured in the small mountainous state of Colima, about 760 kilometers (470 miles) west of Mexico City on the Pacific coast.
Three people were reported dead in neighboring Jalisco and Michoacan states. The epicenter of the original quake at 2 a.m. (Irish Time) was 10 kilometers beneath the sea off the Colima coast.
Mexico's government declared a state of emergency in five Colima towns - Colima, Villa de Alvarez, Coquimatlan, Armenia and Tecoman.
Local radio reported dozens of injured and widespread damage to buildings.
AFP