7.1 earthquake rocks Mexico City, central Mexico

A magnitude-7.1 earthquake struck the central Mexican state of Puebla on Tuesday afternoon, the US Geological Survey said.

Preliminary reports put the epicenter 2.8 miles (4.5 kilometers) east-northeast of San Juan Raboso and 34.1 miles (55 km) south-southwest of the city of Puebla, according to the USGS.

It was felt in the center of Mexico City, which is only about 75 miles (121 km) from the epicenter.

The earthquake struck at a depth of about 33 miles (51 km).

Adrian Wilson, a photographer from New York City, was eating in the capital when he felt the earthquake.

"I was having lunch when the floor gently rocked as if a big truck went by," Wilson said. "It then amplified in waves and the whole room started shaking. The building is from the 1930s and just survived a big earthquake, so I knew I would be OK."

President Enrique Pena Nieto tweeted, "I have called a meeting for the National Emergency Committee to evaluate the situation and to coordinate any actions. Plan MX has been activated."

The leader said he was "on (a) flight to Oaxaca. I immediately will return to Mexico City to address the situation caused by the earthquake."

The earthquake comes 33 years after a magnitude 8.0 earthquake on September 19, 1985, which killed an estimated 9,500 people in and around Mexico City.

It comes one week after a magnitude-8.1 earthquake struck off the southern coast of the country, killing at least 61 people.

Re-posted by Latino Lubbock Magazine