Earthquakes and storms in Spanish: alerts, warnings, and what to say in Mexico, Spain, Colombia and Argentina
An earthquake alert, a hurricane warning or a flood message on your phone arrives in Spanish. The vocabulary is short and specific, and each country has its own system and its own words for the same event. Below: earthquakes, hurricanes, floods and storms, how the warnings work in Mexico, Spain, Colombia and Argentina, what the official messages say, and what you will need to say and ask. For the emergency call itself, see the emergencies post. For everyday rain and sun, the weather post.
Earthquakes: the words
| Mexico | Spain | Colombia | Argentina | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| An earthquake (everyday) | un temblor, un sismo | un terremoto, un temblor | un temblor | un sismo, un temblor |
| Did you feel it? | ¿Sentiste el temblor? | ¿Has notado el temblor? | ¿Sintió el temblor? (usted) / ¿Sentiste? | ¿Sentiste el sismo? |
Temblor is the everyday word in Mexico and Colombia, even for a strong earthquake, and temblar is the verb: ¡está temblando!, it’s shaking, and tembló anoche, there was an earthquake last night. Sismo is the word the authorities and the news use. Terremoto is kept for a big, damaging one in Latin America; in Spain, where earthquakes are rare, it is the usual word.
| You want to know | Spanish |
|---|---|
| aftershock | la réplica |
| epicentre | el epicentro |
| magnitude | la magnitud / de magnitud 6,2 |
| intensity | la intensidad |
| the fault | la falla |
| a tsunami | un tsunami / un maremoto (Spain) |
| collapsed | colapsado / derrumbado |
| a crack | una grieta |
| rubble | los escombros |
| trapped | atrapado / atrapada |
Reporters say de magnitud more than en la escala de Richter.
Mexico’s earthquake alert
Mexico has a public earthquake early warning system, el Sistema de Alerta Sísmica Mexicano, known as SASMEX. Sensors near the Pacific coast detect a strong earthquake and send a warning before the shaking reaches cities further inland, including Mexico City.
In Mexico City the alert sounds from street loudspeakers, and most of the city’s radio and television stations carry it too. The warning time depends on how far away the earthquake is; for Mexico City it can be more than a minute and a half, and for places close to the epicentre it can be very short.
Offices, schools and public buildings have a meeting point, el punto de reunión, marked with a sign, and la zona de seguridad, the safe area. La ruta de evacuación is the exit route.
There are national drills in Mexico, simulacros nacionales, and one is held on 19 September, the date of the 1985, 2017 and 2022 earthquakes.
| You will hear or read | It means |
|---|---|
| Alerta sísmica. | Earthquake alert |
| Este es un simulacro. | This is a drill |
| Diríjase a la zona de seguridad. | Go to the safe area |
| Aléjese de las ventanas. | Move away from windows |
| No use los elevadores. | Do not use the lifts |
| Punto de reunión. | Meeting point |
| Salida de emergencia. | Emergency exit |
What to say during and after an earthquake
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Is it shaking? | ¿Está temblando? | |
| Where is the safe area? | ¿Dónde está la zona de seguridad? | Mexico |
| Where is the emergency exit? | ¿Dónde está la salida de emergencia? | |
| Are you all right? | ¿Estás bien? / ¿Está bien? (usted) | |
| I’m fine | Estoy bien. | The first message to send home |
| We’re all fine | Estamos todos bien. | |
| Someone is hurt | Hay un herido. / Hay alguien herido. | |
| Is the building safe? | ¿El edificio es seguro? | |
| Can we go back in? | ¿Ya podemos volver a entrar? | |
| There’s a crack in the wall | Hay una grieta en la pared. | |
| It smells of gas | Huele a gas. | Tell someone at once; don’t use switches |
| Was that an aftershock? | ¿Eso fue una réplica? | |
| What magnitude was it? | ¿De qué magnitud fue? | |
| Where was the epicentre? | ¿Dónde fue el epicentro? |
Hurricanes
| You want | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| a hurricane | un huracán | |
| a tropical storm | una tormenta tropical | |
| a tropical depression | una depresión tropical | |
| a tropical cyclone | un ciclón tropical | The general term in official warnings |
| the eye | el ojo del huracán | |
| landfall | tocar tierra | El huracán tocó tierra en… |
| category | la categoría | un huracán categoría 3 |
| the storm surge | la marea de tormenta | |
| heavy swell | el oleaje / el mar de fondo | |
| to board up | proteger las ventanas | |
| a shelter | un refugio / un refugio temporal (Mexico) | |
| to evacuate | evacuar |
Mexico is the only one of the four with a hurricane coast on both sides. The Atlantic season, which includes the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, runs from 1 June to 30 November. The eastern Pacific season starts on 15 May and also ends on 30 November. El Servicio Meteorológico Nacional issues the forecasts, and Protección Civil leads the emergency response.
Colombia’s Caribbean coast and the islands of San Andrés and Providencia are in the hurricane zone. Hurricane Iota struck Providencia in 2020.
Floods, landslides and storms
| Mexico | Spain | Colombia | Argentina | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flood | una inundación | una inundación, una riada | una inundación | una inundación |
| The river burst its banks | Se desbordó el río. | Se ha desbordado el río. | Se desbordó el río. | Se desbordó el río. |
| Landslide, mudslide | un deslave, un derrumbe | un deslizamiento de tierra, un corrimiento de tierras | un derrumbe, un deslizamiento | un deslizamiento |
Hail is granizo everywhere. The rainy season is la temporada de lluvias in Mexico and Colombia. Invierno in Colombia often means the rainy season, not the cold part of the year. Llegó el invierno in Bogotá means the rains have come.
Spain has the DANA. Depresión aislada en niveles altos is the meteorologists’ term for a cut-off low that can bring torrential rain. Another name for it is la gota fría. The DANA of October 2024 caused catastrophic flooding in the Valencia region.
Argentina has its own named weather. La sudestada is a strong south-easterly wind on the Río de la Plata that pushes the river up and floods low parts of Buenos Aires. El zonda is a hot, dry wind that comes down from the Andes in Mendoza and San Juan.
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Is the road open? | ¿Está abierta la carretera? / ¿Está abierta la ruta? (Argentina) | |
| The road is cut off | La carretera está cortada. | |
| Is the flight cancelled? | ¿Cancelaron el vuelo? / ¿Han cancelado el vuelo? (Spain) | |
| The power is out | Se fue la luz. (Latin America) / Se ha ido la luz. (Spain) | |
| There’s no signal | No hay señal. | |
| Is the tap water safe? | ¿Se puede tomar el agua de la llave? (Mexico, Colombia) / ¿…del grifo? (Spain) / ¿…de la canilla? (Argentina) | |
| Where is the nearest shelter? | ¿Dónde está el refugio más cercano? | |
| Should we leave? | ¿Tenemos que evacuar? | |
| Do we need to stock up? | ¿Hay que comprar provisiones? |
How the warnings work
Spain. AEMET, the state weather agency, issues warnings by colour: aviso amarillo, aviso naranja and aviso rojo, red being the most serious. ES-Alert is the system that sends alerts straight to mobile phones in an affected area, with a loud tone. The emergency number is 112.
Colombia. El IDEAM is the weather and hydrology institute, and la UNGRD is the national disaster agency. The alerts have colours: alerta amarilla, alerta naranja, alerta roja. The national emergency line is 123.
Argentina. El Servicio Meteorológico Nacional (SMN) issues warnings by colour: amarillo, naranja and rojo. Defensa Civil handles emergencies at local level. The national emergency line is 911.
Mexico. For earthquakes there is SASMEX. Storms are forecast by el Servicio Meteorológico Nacional, and Protección Civil leads the emergency response. The emergency number is 911.
With alerta, which is feminine, the colour word is feminine too: alerta roja, alerta naranja. With aviso, masculine, it is aviso rojo, aviso amarillo; naranja does not change. Argentina’s SMN treats alerta as masculine: alerta amarillo, alerta rojo.
What the official messages say
| You will read or hear | It means |
|---|---|
| Evite desplazamientos. | Avoid travel |
| Permanezca en su domicilio. | Stay at home |
| Suba a zonas altas. | Go to higher ground |
| No cruce ríos ni arroyos. | Do not cross rivers or streams |
| Aléjese de la costa. | Move away from the coast |
| Evacúe la zona. | Evacuate the area |
| Diríjase al refugio más cercano. | Go to the nearest shelter |
| Siga las indicaciones de las autoridades. | Follow the authorities’ instructions |
| Manténgase informado. | Stay informed |
| Peligro extraordinario. | Extraordinary danger |
| Lluvias torrenciales. | Torrential rain |
| Vientos fuertes. / Rachas de viento. | Strong winds / gusts |
Official messages are in the usted form, and the imperatives above are all usted forms. Evite, permanezca, suba, aléjese are the words to recognise.
The emergency kit
| You want | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| an emergency backpack | una mochila de emergencia | |
| a torch | una linterna | |
| batteries | pilas | Batería is a phone or car battery |
| a power bank | una batería externa / un power bank | |
| bottled water | agua embotellada | |
| tinned food | latas / comida enlatada | conservas in Spain |
| a first-aid kit | un botiquín | |
| a whistle | un silbato | |
| copies of documents | copias de los documentos | |
| cash | efectivo | Card machines may be down |
Ten sentences you can say tomorrow
- ¿Está temblando? Is it shaking?
- ¿Dónde está el punto de reunión? Where is the meeting point? (Mexico)
- Estoy bien. Estamos todos bien. I’m fine. We’re all fine.
- ¿Eso fue una réplica? Was that an aftershock?
- ¿Hay alerta por el huracán? Is there a hurricane warning?
- ¿Dónde está el refugio más cercano? Where is the nearest shelter?
- Hay aviso rojo por lluvias. There’s a red warning for rain. (Spain)
- Se desbordó el río y la carretera está cortada. The river burst its banks and the road is cut off.
- Se fue la luz y no hay señal. The power is out and there’s no signal.
- ¿Tenemos que evacuar? Do we have to evacuate?
Questions people ask
What is the difference between sismo, temblor and terremoto? Sismo is the technical word. Temblor is the everyday word in Mexico and Colombia, for any earthquake. Terremoto is a big, destructive one in Latin America, and the usual word in Spain.
How does the earthquake alert work in Mexico? Sensors near the Pacific coast detect a strong earthquake and SASMEX sends a warning ahead of the shaking. In Mexico City it sounds from street loudspeakers.
What is a DANA in Spain? A cut-off low that can bring torrential rain. It is also called gota fría.
When is hurricane season in Mexico? From 15 May on the Pacific side and from 1 June on the Atlantic side, until 30 November on both.
What does “aviso rojo” mean? The highest weather warning level in Spain. In Latin America the same idea is alerta roja, and alerta rojo in Argentina.
How do you say “aftershock” in Spanish? Una réplica.
How do you say “the power is out”? Se fue la luz in Latin America, se ha ido la luz in Spain. Luz means electricity here.
Practise these words
terremoto, temblar, réplica, tormenta, inundación, alerta, aviso, evacuar, refugio, salida, edificio, luz, huracán. Vozelu is a free website for practising Spanish, and it has each of these. You see a sentence with one word missing, you type the word, and a native voice reads the sentence back. Practise the words on this page.