A powerful 6.4 magnitude earthquake shakes the border between Mexico and Guatemala

a A strong earthquake shook the border of Mexico and Guatemala Sunday morning, prompting frightened residents to take to the streets.

The quake occurred shortly before 6 a.m. near the Mexican border city of Suchiate, where a river of the same name divides the two countries.

The epicenter of the earthquake occurred off the Pacific coast, at a depth of 47 miles and 10 miles west-southwest of Brisas Barra de Socialie, where the river empties into the sea. The initial magnitude of the quake was 6.4, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

After the strong earthquake, several aftershocks were recorded in the area.

In Mexico, there were no immediate reports of damage, but mountainous and remote areas on the border are vulnerable to landslides.

Across the border, Guatemala's National Disaster Prevention Agency posted photos of small landslides on roads in the Quetzaltenango region and large cracks in the walls of a hospital in San Marcos on its social media accounts, but there were no reports of deaths.

In Tapachula, near the border, civil defense teams combed the city for any signs of any effects resulting from the earthquake.

Didier Solares, a civil defense official in Sociate, said they had so far found no damage. “Fortunately, everything is fine,” Solaris said. He added: “We talk to companies and (rural areas) via radio, and there is nothing and no damage, thank God.”

But despite everything, the earthquake frightened the residents. In the picturesque, mountainous colonial city of San Cristobal, residents felt the tremor strongly.

“We are standing here because we have an earthquake alert service,” resident Joaquin Morales said. “The alert woke me up because it came 30 seconds before (the earthquake).”

In Tuxtla Chico, a town near Tapachula, Maria Guzman, a teacher, said: “It was terrible, and I felt powerful. “It was a real scare.”