Death Toll On The Rise: Mexico City Earthquake

Death On the Rise in Mexico City.

Tuesday’s 7.1 magnitude earthquake wreaked havoc and death on Mexico City.  Power has been lost in 40% of Mexico City and 44 buildings have fallen. Amidst this tragedy, people are banding together using everything from buckets to their bare hands in efforts to find any survivors. Those in the search effort have been calling out quiet and even resorting to cardboard signs with the words “SILENCIO” (Silence) in hopes to hear any survivors who may still have the strength to call out for help.   A grisly scene was uncovered today when rescuers came upon a collapsed classroom. Inside the rescuers discovered 25 bodies, sadly the majority of which were children. Putting the death toll at 225 and rising.  Although disheartening the rescuers trekked on and were able to find a young child alive with the help of their search dog.

The President of Mexico declared a state of disaster and made all hospitals ready to take in anyone illy affected. Nieto said his primary goal is to tend to the injured and rescue any trapped survivors.  President Trump spoke at length with Mexico’s President and later tweeted:

Watch the video below.

As reported by Fox News.

Mexico City’s international airport tweeted that it had suspended operations following the quake, although it was not immediately clear how many flights have been affected.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, whose state recently suffered greatly from Hurricane Harvey, offered his condolences on Twitter and said Texas “will continue to offer any support to aid Mexico in their time of need.”

In a statement, the U.S. State Department said the U.S. stands “ready to provide assistance should our neighbors request our help.” It added that the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City is also ready to provide assistance to U.S. citizens who were possibly affected by the quake.

Much of Mexico City is built on a former lakebed, and the soil is known to amplify the effects of earthquakes even hundreds of miles away.

The 1985 magnitude-8.1 quake lasted between 3 to 5 minutes, collapsed hundreds of buildings, left an estimated 10,000 people dead, and left tens of thousands injured or homeless, The Los Angeles Times reported.