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In a span of around 12 hours at least 5 earthquakes were registered in and around the Baja California Peninsula. The seismic movements took place within the gulf of California, also known as the sea of Cortez. This is essentially the ocean corridor that separates the state of Baja California from the Mexico mainland. These earthquakes occurred all throughout Monday, and some lighter replicas were still registered on Tuesday.
The largest of these earthquakes registered at 4.7 on the Richter scale. Also, the quake with the closest epicenter to the cabo region happened only about 100 kilometers (62 miles) from San Jose del Cabo. That may seem like a long way away. Seismic activity though has been known to affect places that are much further away from the epicenter as the Cabo region is from the epicenter of these recent seismic movements.
At this point in time, about 2 days after the movements were registered the civil protection secretary in the region has yet to provide a damage report. Luckily though it seems that the low magnitude of the earthquake led to no harm being done to structures in the cabo region. No damages were reported in the La Paz region either. La Paz was actually much closer to the epicenter of 4 of the 5 registered seismic movements.
The Effects That Seismic Movements May Have On The Region
As previously mentioned it seems that no major structural damage was made to buildings or roads in the area. That does not mean that these seismic shifts, particularly ones like these occurring in the ocean floor, won’t bring certain consequences to the region. Since Monday when these earthquakes were recorded on a Richter scale Cabo beaches have presented signs of rough tides.
Warning flags on most Cabo beaches for the week are set to remain at least at a yellow warning level. Meanwhile, the beach on the tourist corridor in San Jose del Cabo, as well as Palmilla, and Las Viudas beaches started the week on a red flag high alert. Which, for all intents and purposes means that tourists are not allowed to swim in those particular beaches.
Other than the earthquakes, strong winds have also made themselves present in the region. They certainly represent another factor that can lead to the closure of multiple beaches in the area. Local weather reports indicate that San Jose del Cabo beaches, and neighboring areas are seeing consistent 3 to 6 mph winds, and occasional wind gusts that have reached up to 27mph. At the time of writing for this article there’s no official word on outright beach closures in Los Cabos. Authorities are warning locals and tourists to stay vigilant, and follow the set guidelines at all times.
Other Than Beaches There Seem To Be No More Tangible Effects On Tourists
The weather issues in general seem to have no effect on the amount of tourists that are arriving to the region. In a recent interview the spokesperson for the association of travel agencies of Los Cabos mentioned that the area is set to see record numbers of hotel occupancy. Both national and international tourists are flowing into the region consistently, through the Spring season. After two pandemic riddled years the tourism sectors’ hopes are high. He even went as far as to mention that the “anglo-saxon market was in full production” during this spring season.
However, the spokesperson for the travel agencies mentioned that they shouldn’t get their hopes up too much. Reminding people within his own sector how hard it was for Los Cabos tourism to regroup after the 2008 financial collapse. Which coincided with a wave of violence in the region. Causing tourist arrival numbers to drastically plummet.