Strong earthquake off Cuba's coast shakes Havana, Mexico's Cancun

HAVANA/CANCUN – A strong earthquake struck off Cuba’s northwest coast on Monday, according to official reports, shaking parts of Cuba, Mexico and Florida that are typically not prone to quakes.

The US Geological Survey measured the quake at a magnitude 6.1 at a shallow depth of 26 km (16 miles). The agency located the earthquake’s epicenter 104 km west-northwest of Mantua, Cuba, about 2-4 hours by car from the capital Havana.

Decades of economic crisis in Cuba have left buildings in severe disrepair and susceptible to earthquakes. Ongoing widespread blackouts across the region have made communications difficult in the region.

“It felt strong. I had never felt anything like that,” said Yusmila Hernandez, 44, at her home in Pinar del Rio, in western Cuba.

“People ran outside, everyone scared. I can’t even explain it. It felt like no earthquake has ever felt here before,” Hernandez said.

USGS reported that shaking was also felt in Florida. In Mexico, the quake was felt in the resort cities of Cancun, Playa del Carmen and Tulum on the country’s Yucatan peninsula. Residents and workers in Cancun’s city center, unaccustomed to strong quakes, evacuated buildings.

Emergency protocols were activated in Mexico’s Yucatan and Quintana Roo states, but there were not yet reports of damage, the state's governors both said on social media.

No tsunami warning or watch was issued after the earthquake, according to the US National Weather Service. — Reuters