GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala (AFP) — A 6.8 magnitude earthquake hit near Guatemala’s coast Thursday, the US Geological Survey said, just eight days after another strong tremor killed five people in the Central American country.

There were no immediate reports of casualties. The quake struck at 6:31 (1231 GMT). Its epicentre was in the Pacific Ocean about 23 kilometres (14 miles) south-west of Puerto San Jose, with a depth of 46.8 kilometres, according to USGS.

Residents of El Salvador also felt the trembling, with many people coming out of their houses for fear of aftershocks, according to authorities in that country.

On June 14, a magnitude 6.9 tremor hit Guatemala and southern Mexico, leaving five people dead, causing power outages and knocking down homes.

Guatemala is in a risk zone for tremors, located where the Caribbean Cocos tectonic plates converge with North America’s tectonic plates.

San Marcos was hit by earthquakes in 2012 and 2014 that left dozens dead.