A powerful magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck southern and central Mexico at just before 8am on Friday, January 2, 2026 (local time), shaking buildings as far away as Mexico City and leaving at least two people dead, according to the Associated Press.

The quake forced President Claudia Sheinbaum to halt her first New Year press briefing as earthquake warning sirens sounded, prompting journalists and officials to evacuate. The briefing resumed a short time later.

Mexico’s National Seismological Service said the epicentre was near San Marcos in the southern state of Guerrero, close to the Pacific resort city of Acapulco. More than 500 aftershocks followed, and tremors were felt in the capital.

Civil protection authorities reported multiple landslides around Acapulco and along highways in the state.

Guerrero Governor Evelyn Salgado said one of the victims was a 50-year-old woman living in a small community near the epicentre, where her home collapsed. Officials also said a hospital in Chilpancingo, the state capital, was heavily damaged and several patients were evacuated.

Residents and tourists in Mexico City and Acapulco rushed into the streets in the morning. Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada said one person died after suffering a medical emergency and falling during the evacuation of a building.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) said the earthquake occurred at a depth of 21.7 miles (35 kilometres), about 2.5 miles north-northwest of Rancho Viejo, Guerrero, in a mountainous area roughly 57 miles northeast of Acapulco.

A doctor and human-rights activist living on a hillside in Acapulco said he heard a loud roar as dogs in the area began barking. He said earthquake alerts sounded on his mobile phone and the shaking intensified, though he described it as less severe than previous major quakes. He added that he had prepared an emergency backpack in case further tremors prompted another evacuation.