Two people died following the strong earthquakes that shook much of Guatemala on Tuesday and caused various material damages, according to civil protection authorities. Guatemalans experienced a swarm of earthquakes Tuesday afternoon, the strongest registering between 4.8 and 5.6 in magnitude, with epicenters near the capital in the towns of Amatitlán and Alotenango, according to seismic services. The quakes were also felt in neighboring El Salvador.
“Unfortunately, human losses have been confirmed,” said Andrés Erazo, Communications Director of the National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction (Conred), reporting that a rock and landslide buried a vehicle traveling along a highway southwest of Guatemala City.
Erazo confirmed two deaths in the vehicle, though the victims have not been identified. Local media reported that they were street vendors selling furniture. The landslide occurred at kilometer 47 on a road southwest of the capital, near the tourist city of Antigua Guatemala.
President Bernardo Arévalo stated at a press conference that the earthquakes also left at least seven more people buried in three towns southwest of the capital. Two people were rescued and taken to public hospitals, while five others—a family of three adults and two children—were still being freed by rescue teams.
In response to the emergency, the president suspended school classes and work for Wednesday in both public and private sectors across three departments: Guatemala (central), where the capital is located, Escuintla (south), and Sacatepéquez (southwest).
The earthquakes triggered evacuations of dozens of people from buildings in Guatemala City as earthquake alarms sounded, according to a journalist. “It felt very strong,” said an office complex employee in the capital, still shaken by the tremors. Central America frequently experiences such seismic events due to the convergence of the Caribbean and Cocos tectonic plates, along with local geological faults that often generate imperceptible quakes.
