The video will start in 8 Cancel

The Daily Star's FREE newsletter is spectacular! Sign up today for the best stories straight to your inbox Sign up today! Thank you for subscribing See our privacy notice Invalid Email

Two powerful 4.1 magnitude earthquakes have struck off the southwest coast of Mexico near Paredón, Chiapas, according to according to US Geological Survey.

A magnitude 5.5 hit Las Aguamitas, Sinaloa, just hours before.

Three earthquakes later rattled Oaxaca in southern Mexico, the strongest of which caused residents to flee their homes.

The huge tremors struck in the same region that the most powerful earthquake in a century hit just weeks ago, killing at least 90.

And the country is still reeling from the massive earthquake that virtually flattened Mexico City just days ago.

At least 298 people were killed and entire communities were left in ruin with rescue operations still under way to save dozens feared trapped under rubble.

Mexico is situated in a notorious earthquake "danger zone" known as the Ring of Fire, where up to 80% of the world's tremors occur, USGS said.

(Image: DS)

Rescuers continued to search collapsed buildings in Mexico City, where many people may still be buried alive.

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, who declared three days of national mourning, has said saving lives is the top priority.

Operations to save trapped residents are under way 38 buildings reduced to rubble by the earthquake, which struck on Tuesday aternoon.

In a chilling twist of fate, the tremor rattled Mexico City as the region carried out earthquake drills on the 32nd anniversary of a 1985 earthquake that killed thousands.

Tuesday's quake was centered near Raboso in Puebla state, some 75 miles southeast of Mexico City, according to the United States Geological Survey.

US President Donald Trump has offered search-and-rescue assistance to Mexican authorities, tweeting on Tuesday: "God bless the people of Mexico City. We are with you and will be there for you."

(Image: USGS)

A volcano some 43 miles away from Mexico City exploded into life at the same time as the erathquake struck.

Fifteen people were killed by the eruption when a church collapsed during mass in Atzitzihuacan on the slopes of the Popocatepetl volcano.

Volcano experts told Daily Star Online it is possible that the earthquake triggered the eruption by causing a reservoir of magma to burst towards the surface.

(Image: TWITTER)

Dr Luca De Siena, of the University of Aberdeen, said: “Proximity to a dense metropolitan area is one of the main issues, so Popoctepetl is certainly dangerous.”

But even this medium-sized eruption may have had far further reaching consequences than first estimated, Dr De Siena said.

He added: “For example volcanic ashes are often underestimated: think about Eyjafjnallajokull, the volcano that erupted in 2010 in Iceland, far from any vast metropolitan area.

“The ashes covered most of the fly routes in Europe, causing huge economic damage."

The latest earthquake swarm comes as catastrophic natural disasters cause devastation and deaths across the globe.

A dam has burst in Puerto Rico sparking a mass evacuation after category 5 Hurricane Maria pummelled the country.

California is also on earthquake alert after experts warned a "big one" tremor is inevitable after an "unusual" spate of seismic activity in across the Pacific.