Mexico and Dominican Republic announce national earthquake drills

Mexico and the Dominican Republic are conducting national earthquake drills to strengthen disaster preparedness and emergency response protocols.

In Mexico, the Second National Drill of 2026 is scheduled for September 19 at 12:00 hours. Organized by the National Civil Protection Coordination and the Ministry of Security and Citizen Protection, the exercise will involve five different hypothetical seismic scenarios across various regions, including Puebla, Baja California, Nuevo León, the Yucatan Peninsula, and Chiapas. The drill will utilize cell phone alerts, radio, television, and over 23,000 loudspeakers in major cities like Mexico City and Estado de México. In Cancún, more than one thousand buildings are expected to participate under a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hypothesis.

In the Dominican Republic, the Emergency Operations Center (COE) has organized a National Evacuation Drill for September 8 at 10:00 hours. The exercise aims to test alarm systems, evacuation routes, and coordination between public and private institutions to prepare the population for seismic events and potential tsunamis.