June 16, 1999
Web posted at: 2:04 a.m. EDT (0604 GMT)

PUEBLA, Mexico (CNN) -- A powerful earthquake shook central Mexico on Tuesday, leveling concrete apartment buildings, cutting power and telephone service and sending thousands of panic-stricken residents fleeing into the streets.

Civil defense officials said at least 15 people were killed in the 6.7-magnitude quake. The first reports of significant damage came from Puebla, a city of 1.2 million about 75 miles (120 km) southeast of Mexico City.

Emergency crews were sifting through piles of twisted concrete that once were apartment buildings several stories high in downtown Puebla. Nearby residents watched through broken windows.

Local television broadcast scenes of rescue workers picking through chest-high concrete in a colonial-era church. The 300-year-old city hall, a major hospital, a highway bridge and some houses also suffered major damage.

TV Azteca said 200 people were injured and that 12 people were still pinned beneath the rubble.

The quake was centered near Tehuacan, about 135 miles (217 km) southeast of Mexico City, according to the National Earthquake Center, which monitors earthquake activity worldwide.

It was "felt very, very strongly," said Hector Gonzalez, civil defense director of Huajuapan de Leon, a city near the epicenter. He said it knocked out electricity and telephone service, but he had no reports of injuries or major damage.

In Mexico City, frightened residents dashed out into the streets when the quake struck at about 3:41 p.m. (2041 GMT), causing buildings to sway. Many stood outside for more than an hour, waiting to hear if it was safe to go back inside.

News helicopters hovering above the city recorded no visible signs of damage to buildings. Telephone service and power were disrupted in some areas.

President Ernesto Zedillo cut short a planned trip to the Caribbean coast and said he would fly to Puebla state to assess the damage. Mexican officials declared a state of emergency.

Mexico's largest recent earthquake, on September 19, 1985, was recorded at magnitude 8.1 and killed at least 9,500 people.

Robert Meli, director of the National Center for Disaster Prevention, told TV Azteca that the current quake, which lasted about 40 seconds, was "between five and 10 times smaller than the one in 1985."

Mexico City Bureau Chief Harris Whitbeck and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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