* 6.9 magnitude quake strikes in Sea of Cortez
* No immediate reports of damage or injuries (Adds new quote, detail on quake location, status of LNG terminal)
MEXICO CITY, Oct 21 (Reuters) - A powerful magnitude 6.9 quake struck in the Sea of Cortez off Mexico&${esc.hash}39;s Baja California on Thursday, rattling towns on both sides of the narrow sea but there were were no reports of major damage or injuries.
The quake shook buildings in the tourist resort of La Paz on the Baja California peninsula, famous for its whale watching, as well as along the coast of the state of Sinaloa.
"It was horrible, very strong. We were in the town hall and the roof started creaking so we all ran out," said Mayola Gutierrez, an assistant to the mayor of Ahome in Sinaloa, who said minor damage was done to the facade of the building.
Sinaloa emergency officials said they had no reports of damage but were investigating reports that some buildings had been evacuated.
Sempra Energy <SRE.N>, which operates a liquefied natural gas import terminal at Ensenada on the Pacific Coast of Baja California near the U.S. border said there had been no impact on operations.
The quake was centered in the south of the Sea of Cortez, also known as the Gulf of California, 65 miles (105 km) south of Los Mochis in Sinaloa on the mainland. It was very shallow, just 6.2 miles (10 km) below the seabed.
The Pacific Tsunami center said the quake had not triggered a tsunami but could cause local waves. (Reporting by Cyntia Barrera, Luis Rojas and Michael O&${esc.hash}39;Boyle in Mexico City, Sandra Maler in Washington and Edward McAllister in New York; Writing by Robert Campbell)
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