6.6-magnitude earthquake rattles Guatemala

Guatemala City, Jun 14: A 6.6-magnitude earthquake hit western Guatemala near the Mexico border, shaking several cities and injuring one person according to preliminary reports, officials said. No tsunami warnings have been issued so far.

The quake was registered at 1:29 am local time, its epicentre around 156 kilometres west of Guatemala City in the department of San Marcos, the Institute of Seismology said.

The US Geological Survey measured the quake at 6.9 on the Richter scale. The tremor was felt in several regions, including the capital, according to Guatemala's National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction.

A person was injured in the southwestern village of San Sebastian after an old church collapsed, the agency said. President Jimmy Morales posted a message on Twitter saying "stay calm and be alert to possible aftershocks."

Guatemala is in a risk zone for tremors, located where the Caribbean Cocos tectonic plates converge with North America's tectonic plates. San Marcos was hit by earthquakes in 2012 and 2014 that left dozens dead.

PTI