People try to make calls on their mobile phones after an evacuation due to an earthquake, in Guatemala City November 7, 2012. 
 
 People stand outside the building of the supreme court after an evacuation due to an earthquake, in Guatemala City November 7, 2012. 
 
 People rush down the staircase while evacuating the building of the supreme court after an earthquake, in Guatemala City November 7, 2012. 
 
 People from surrounding office buildings gather at the Monument to the Revolution during an earthquake evacuation in Mexico City November 7, 2012. 
 
 People rush down the staircase while evacuating the building of the supreme court after an earthquake in Guatemala City November 7, 2012. 
 
 People stand outside the building of the supreme court after an evacuation due to an earthquake, in Guatemala City November 7, 2012. 
 
 A firefighter inspects the facade of a building after an earthquake in Mexico City November 7, 2012. 
 
 A woman talks on the phone as she gathers with others on Paseo de la Reforma avenue, after being evacuated from a building, after an earthquake in Mexico City November 7, 2012. 
 
 People from surrounding office buildings gather at the Monument to the Revolution during an earthquake evacuation in Mexico City November 7, 2012. A strong earthquake off the coast of Guatemala on Wednesday shook buildings in Guatemala City and San Salvador and was felt as... 
 
 Office workers gather on Paseo de la Reforma avenue, after being evacuated from a building, after an earthquake in Mexico City November 7, 2012. 
 
 Office workers gather on Paseo de la Reforma avenue, after being evacuated from the Senate building, after an earthquake in Mexico City November 7, 2012. 
 
 Office workers gather on Paseo de la Reforma avenue, after being evacuated from the Senate building, after an earthquake in Mexico City November 7, 2012. 
 
 GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - A strong earthquake off the coast of Guatemala shook buildings in the capital and killed at least 39 people on Wednesday, trapping others under rubble and triggering evacuations as far away as Mexico City. 
 
 The 7.4 magnitude quake hit at 10:35 a.m. local time (11:35 EDT). A local fire chief said at least some of the dead were buried under debris in a mountainous region near the Mexican border. 
 
 Landslides blocked roads in some areas, authorities said, and about 40 houses were severely damaged. 
 
 It was the strongest earthquake to hit Guatemala since a 7.5 magnitude quake in 1976 that claimed more than 20,000 lives. 
 
 President Otto Perez said that as many as 100 people were unaccounted for, based on reports from relatives. 
 
 "These are preliminary figures and we don't have them confirmed," Perez said in Guatemala City. "Our priority is to focus on lives, rescuing people and treating the wounded." 
 
 San Marcos state governor Luis Rivera confirmed the deaths of 39 people, adding that the state government offices were almost completely destroyed. 
 
 Perez said there had been five aftershocks, with authorities distributing 16,000 emergency rations and mobilizing more than 2,000 soldiers to help with the rescue effort. 
 
 Local fire chief Cecilio Chacaj said the bodies of 18 dead had been pulled from rubble in San Marcos and Quetzaltenango, the country's second largest city. 
 
 The quake struck off Guatemala's Pacific coast, 15 miles south of Champerico and 101 miles west-southwest of the capital, the U.S. Geological Survey said. 
 
 Evacuations in Guatemala City filled the streets with office workers calling friends and relatives on their cell phones, but people soon returned to work. 
 
 "It was really big; I felt quite nauseous," said secretary Vanessa Castillo, 32, who was evacuated from her 10th floor office in Guatemala City. 
 
 Building janitor Jorge Gamboa said: "I was in the bathroom. When I came out the office was empty and I thought, what's happening? They didn't even say goodbye." 
 
 The epicenter was 26 miles below the surface, according to the USGS, which initially reported the quake as magnitude 7.5. 
 
 The quake was also felt in El Salvador and more than 765 miles away in Mexico City, where some people also fled offices and homes. Mayor Marcelo Ebrard said the quake was felt strongly in a large part of the city of 20 million people. 
 
 The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said a small tsunami was registered on Guatemala's coast, adding that there was a risk of localized damage within a 62 mile radius. 
 
 (With reporting by Nelson Renteria in San Salvador; Writing by Krista Hughes; Editing by Simon Gardner and Christopher Wilson) 

 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption There have been dozens of aftershocks, four of them over a magnitude of 5 
 
 At least 48 people have been killed and some 20 are missing after a 7.4-magnitude quake hit off Guatemala's Pacific coast. 
 
 President Otto Perez Molina, who toured the worst affected areas, has declared three days of mourning. 
 
 Officials said landslides had buried roads and it would take 24 hours to restore links to the quake-hit area. 
 
 Frightened people fled from offices and homes around the region, as buildings shook from Mexico City to San Salvador. 
 
 The energy ministry said about 73,000 people were left without electricity. 
 
 Quake officials said the tremor hit on Wednesday, at about 10:35 local time (16:35 GMT) about 23km (15 miles) from the Guatemalan town of Champerico. 
 
 'Tragedy' 
 
 The director of Guatemala's Seismological Institute, Eddy Sanchez, said it had been the biggest tremor in Guatemala since 1976, when 25,000 people died in a 7.5-magnitude quake. 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Guatemala resident: "Everyone under here died" 
 
 There have been dozens of aftershocks, four of them over a magnitude of 5. 
 
 President Perez Molina has given several news conferences, each time raising the number of casualties. 
 
 Touring the affected area, he said 40 deaths had been confirmed in San Marcos province and another eight in neighbouring Quetzaltenango. 
 
 He said 23 people were still missing and 153 were being housed in emergency shelters. 
 
 Worst-hit was the town of San Marcos where many buildings were damaged and more than 30 destroyed completely. 
 
 Speaking in San Marcos, Mr Perez Molina said: "It's very sad to meet people here who are waiting to find their families who are still buried. 
 
 "It's really a tragedy and we will do all we can to help the families that are suffering." 
 
 Residents spent Wednesday night outside, wrapped in blankets, while others took shelter in the hospital, the only building with electricity, the Associated Press reports from San Marcos. 
 
 The national volunteer fire service gave details on its Twitter feed of the damage across the San Marcos region, describing how firefighters had pulled seven bodies from the rubble, including that of an 11-year-old boy. 
 
 In the town of San Cristobal Cucho, 10 members of one family were killed when their house collapsed. 
 
 Fourteen houses have been destroyed in the city of Quetzaltenango, which houses dozens of language schools popular with tourists. 
 
 Panama, El Salvador and Honduras have offered their help with the rescue operation.
– At least 39 people died in Guatemala today after a mighty 7.4-magnitude quake struck just off the coast. President Otto Perez Molina declared a state of emergency, urging people to evacuate tall buildings, the BBC reports. The quake hit about 15 miles southwest of Champerico at a depth of about 26 miles, but buildings shook as far away as Mexico City, and one in San Salvador actually toppled over, Reuters reports. "It was really big, I felt quite nauseous," says one woman who was in a 10th-floor office in Guatemala City. Landslides have buried a number of roads, and it may be 24 hours before traffic is moving freely again. The US Pacific Tsunami Center said there was no danger of a big tsunami, but warned that a localized one was still possible.