Watch: Flashes of light seen in night sky as powerful quake hits Mexico

As a 7.0 earthquake shook Mexico's Acapulco, night sky lit up with hues of green, purple and yellow that are called 'Earthquake Lights'. Residents took to social media share photo and videos showing aftermath of the quake.

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The quake struck southern Mexico near the resort of Acapulco, causing buildings to rock and sway in Mexico City nearly 200 miles away.

A powerful earthquake hit Mexico on Tuesday, causing buildings to shake and big rocks to fall in several places in southwestern part of the country. At least one man died after he was crushed by falling debris, reported Reuters. As residents evacuated homes and took to streets, many captured the impact of the quake, sharing shocking videos on social media.

The 7.0 magnitude earthquake, which hit 11 miles (17.7 km) northeast of Acapulco, shook the hills around the city, downing trees and pitching large boulders onto roads. Scared locals gathered in the streets of the Mexican holiday destination amid the aftershocks, cradling little children and pets.

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While some shared home surveillance videos showing furniture toppling owing to the tremors, others captured the night sky that was lit up by bright purple, green and blue hues known as ‘Earthquake Lights’. Footage shared by residents also showed people stranded in cable cars, as power went out, swaying several feet above the ground.

The mysterious lightning of the night sky reminded people of the time when a magnitude 8.1 earthquake struck Mexico in 2017, as similar images and videos had gone viral on social media. While it stunned people around the world, many locals said it has become a common sight during quakes in the country.

The lights can take “many different shapes, forms, and colors,” Friedemann Freund, an adjunct professor of physics at San Jose State University and a senior researcher at NASA’s Ames Research Center, said in a 2014 National Geographic interview.

Explaining the rare phenomenon the report added that “the lights are caused by electric charges activated in certain types of rocks during seismic activity, ‘as if you switched on a battery in the Earth’s crust’.” According to scientist the earthquake lights more commonly appear before or during quakes, not as much afterward.

Así se vieron las luces en el cielo de la #CDMX durante el #sismo de esta noche pic.twitter.com/QnQdZWutWP

— Foro_TV (@Foro_TV) September 8, 2021

Así../ pic.twitter.com/JxaNJhyTy3

— Javier Alarcón (@Javier_Alarcon_) September 8, 2021

Footage from tonite’s quake in Mexico City #CDMX. You can see those eerie lights in the distance that have become a typical sight when city gets hit by a big one 😭 pic.twitter.com/PtySy2eD8R

— Cyntia Barrera Diaz (@CBarreraDiaz) September 8, 2021

#Mexico City’s skyline, showing the Earthquake Lights phenomenon from a 7.1 quake with an epicenter in Acapulco that was felt in many parts of the country. Curious sidenote: people were making memes wondering if this September would bring any earthquakes. It did.#Sismo #Temblor pic.twitter.com/2py9610bUF

— Antonio Video (@AntonioVideoTJ) September 8, 2021

CDMX temblando hace unos minutos y ahora estoy temblando yo. Por fin vi las famosas luces en el cielo. Que susto tan jodidamente grande. 🙏🏻 #sismo #temblor pic.twitter.com/oHLaW3DJgp

— Pablo Dazán (@PabloDazan) September 8, 2021

Temblor CDMX #Temblor #CDMX #septiembre #mexico pic.twitter.com/48f6KzevnV

— Ivann (@ivaan1997) September 8, 2021

@paobarquet que miedo, el cablebus en Iztapalapa pic.twitter.com/SRUwF6utWY

— Lili Díaz (@LiliDepp4ever) September 8, 2021

Momentos de mucho miedo vivieron los ciudadanos de la CDMX y Acapulco aquí la muestra en el cablebus #temblorCDMX #Temblormexico #Temblor #cuidence #oracion #CDMX #Acapulco pic.twitter.com/KcMiBrXzpY

— Javo (@soyjavorios) September 8, 2021

Pinshi temblor, pinshis luces! #Temblor pic.twitter.com/S3Oh7Poq6G

— Izziefur (@izziefur) September 8, 2021

¿Alguien me recuerda la explicación del fenómeno de las luces? #Sismo pic.twitter.com/7Kn8Hf0p7U

— Fück (@EduardoMatiz) September 8, 2021

No tengo los derechos de autor de este video. Pero si se puso intenso. #Mexico #Guerrero #Sismo #temblor #Chilpancingo pic.twitter.com/yhanVD5oKi

— Osiris Hilario (@osirishilario) September 8, 2021

#Sismo
Cdmx pic.twitter.com/EtKyUrMoYI

— Ivan Noiret Arellano (@ArellanoNoiret) September 8, 2021

#NOW | The earthquake in Mexico, from a Lucha Libre stadium in the middle of the evening. #Mexico #earthquake #terremotomexico #Terremoto #Sismo #mexicosismo #luchalibre pic.twitter.com/kDsTGilRwk

— global_news01 🌎 (@global_news01) September 8, 2021

President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said the earthquake had not caused major damage in Guerrero, the neighboring region of Oaxaca, Mexico City and other areas.

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Mexican state power utility the Comision Federal de Electricidad said in a statement that 1.6 million users had been affected by the quake in Mexico City, and the states of Guerrero, Morelos and Oaxaca.

Mexico’s National Civil Defense said it was conducting reviews in 10 states, but had not received reports of victims nor serious damage.