Watch CBS News

No Flight Delays At LAX After M7.4 Quake Rocks Mexico City

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — Airport officials said there were no reports of any flight delays after a magnitude-7.6 earthquake that struck near Acapulco on Tuesday.

Officials at Los Angeles International Airport said that while no airlines at LAX offer direct service to Acapulco, three airlines offer a total of five connecting flights with stops in Mexico City.

Four of those five flights left earlier on Tuesday, and the remaining flight is still scheduled to leave on time.

Airport officials, however, are advising passengers scheduled to fly to Acapulco to check with their airlines before heading to LAX.

The powerful earthquake that struck shortly after 11:20 a.m. knocked out electricity and lines of communication and left thousands of families in California unable to contact their loved ones.

Nearly two dozen aftershocks as powerful as magnitude-5.3 followed along with reports of 500 homes damaged — and some even collapsed — in the southwestern state of Guerrero.

"All large earthquakes have aftershocks," said Cal Tech seismologist Kate Hutton. "Generally, the larger the earthquake the more aftershocks, and the longer the time period where they have significant ones."

KNX 1070's Margaret Carrero talked to an anxious crowd at the Mexican consulate in Los Angeles hoping to hear from family and friends near the epicenter in Oaxaca.

Podcast

"My family on my father's side is in Mexico City, actually, and I'm trying to call right now but I can't get through," said Gabriella Gonzales. "It's really frustrating."

Gonzales became reacquainted with her father's side of the family after a trip to Mexico City last year and is worried about their safety.

"They've been through the big earthquake in, what was it, '86?" she said. "I'm a little bit shaky because they're not answering."

Tuesday's quake was the city's biggest since a magnitude-8.0 struck on the morning of Sept. 19 in 1985.

(©2012 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.