2017 Puebla earthquake
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Location of epicenter in Mexico and Puebla
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| Date | 19 September 2017 |
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| Origin time | 18:14:39 UTC |
| Duration | Strong shaking for about 20 seconds |
| Magnitude | 7.1 (Mw) |
| Depth | 51.0 km (32 mi) |
| Epicenter | 18°35′02″N 98°23′56″W / 18.584°N 98.399°WCoordinates: 18°35′02″N 98°23′56″W / 18.584°N 98.399°W |
| Type | Dip-slip (intraplate) |
| Max. intensity | VIII (Severe) |
| Casualties | At least 226 dead, 800+ injured |
The 2017 Central Mexico earthquake struck at 13:14 CDT (18:14 UTC) on 19 September 2017 with a magnitude estimated to be Mw 7.1 and strong shaking for about 20 seconds, approximately 55 km (34 mi) south of the city of Puebla. It caused damage in the Mexican states of Puebla, Morelos and the Greater Mexico City area, including the collapse of more than forty buildings. Mexico's SASMEX earthquake warning system provided 20 seconds' warning in Mexico City. The day after the earthquake, 230 people had been reported killedand more than 800 injured.
The quake occurred on the 32nd anniversary of the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, which killed about 10,000 people, commemorated with a national earthquake drill at 11 a.m. local time, two hours before this earthquake struck. The event followed an even larger earthquake off the coast of the state of Chiapas eleven days earlier.
Mexico is one of the world's most seismically active regions, sitting atop several intersecting tectonic plates. The border between the Cocos Plate and North American Plate, along the Pacific Coast of Mexico, creates a subduction zone that is able to generate large seismic events. Taken together with the activity along the edges of the Rivera and Caribbean plates, the country experiences an average of 40 earthquakes a day. Mexico City is built on a dry lakebed with soft soil that amplifies the destruction caused by a major earthquake.
Less than two weeks before the Puebla earthquake, Mexico had been struck by an earthquake in Chiapas on 7 September, which killed almost 100 people. Despite its close timing, the Puebla earthquake was not an aftershock of the Chiapas event, as the epicenters were 650 km (400 mi) apart.
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