A STRONG earthquake jolted Mexico today, sending people rushing out into the streets of the capital in the middle of the night, days after a powerful tremor left at least two people dead.

The epicentre of the 6.9-magnitude quake was near the Pacific coast, 84km south of Coalcoman in the western state of Michoacan, the national seismological agency reported.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) estimated the magnitude at 6.8.

Michoacan had been hit by a powerful magnitude 7.7-earthquake on Monday that damaged several thousand buildings and sparked panic several hundred kilometres away in Mexico City.

The latest quake again triggered early warning alarms in the capital at 1.16am, causing people to evacuate their homes, some still dressed in pyjamas and carrying their pet dogs.

Mexico City mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said official helicopters had flown over the city and that there were no initial reports of destruction.

“So far there is no damage in the city after the earthquake,” she tweeted.

The quake hit at a depth of 12km, according to the national seismological agency, while USGS estimated the depth at 24km, located about 410km from Mexico City.

Monday’s tremor came less than an hour after millions of people in Mexico City participated in emergency drills on the anniversary of two deadly earthquakes in 1985 and 2017.

On September 19, 1985, an 8.1-magnitude quake killed more than 10,000 people and destroyed hundreds of buildings.

On the anniversary of that earthquake in 2017, a 7.1 quake left around 370 people dead, mainly in the capital. – AFP, September 22, 2022.