Mexico has been hit with a very powerful Earthquake that has killed at least 217 people, including 22 primary school children who were crushed when their school collapsed on top of them. Many others buildings have been toppled as the capital city of the country, Mexico City, has taken the worst of the hit from the massive quake.
The official death toll from the earthquake has been reduced by authorities since it escalated greatly last night. Emergency rescue teams have been working diligently through the night to save whoever they can, however they can.
They've been digging through the rubbled remains of Mexico City to locate survivors, having burrowed through what's left of a primary school to find what must have been a truly harrowing sight: 22 children who had died in the quake.
Mexico City quake had a magnitude of 7.1
The earthquake had a magnitude of 7.1, which is really high and not a magnitude of earthquake you want to ever find yourself in. In what is perhaps the most astounding and also most terrible coincidence that has ever occurred, last night's earthquake came on the anniversary of another devastating and destructive earthquake in Mexico City that took place way back in 1985. That quake led to awful damage in the city and took place – again, another crazy and tragic coincidence – while most of the city were partaking in an emergency earthquake drill.
It has also been just two weeks since another earthquake hit Mexico. There was an entirely separate major earthquake in the southern region of Mexico two weeks ago that claimed 90 lives and ravaged the land. There was widespread panic after last night's earthquake hit as thousands of people took to the streets to escape its devastating wrath.
While it was Mexico City that took the worst damage from the earthquake, there were several states around it in the country that were also affected. The capital wasn't even the epicentre of the quake; that was Atencingo in the state of Puebla, which is about 75 miles to the south-east of Mexico City. The quake struck 32 miles deep below surface level at 1:14pm on their time, according to a study conducted by the US Geological Survey, and it's still managing to cause this kind of damage.
Most deaths in capital, as 86 confirmed dead there
Out of the 217 confirmed deaths, the most of them took place in the worst-hit region, the capital city of the country, Mexico City, with 86 confirmed dead there. That's according to statistics produced and announced by the man in charge of coordinating the Civil Protection Service in Mexico, Luis Felipe Puente. However, the other states affected by the quake aren't far behind on the death count, with 71 people killed in Morelos, which is just south of the capital, and 43 killed in the state of Puebla, which is where the earthquake struck originally.
As the earthquake raged on throughout the night, it took out the electricity in 40% of Mexico City and in 60% of Morelos.
Those regions were left in the pitch black as they were rapidly being destroyed by forces of nature, and remain without electricity this morning.
President Nieto: earthquake is 'a hard and very painful test' for Mexico
Mexico's President Enrique Pena Nieto has spoken out about the earthquake, warning his people to stay in their homes, albeit only if it's safe to do so. The intention there is to keep congestion off the streets so that emergency vehicles will be able to pass through and get rescue workers to the rubble in order to save as many of the quake's victims as possible.
Nieto is not particularly respected among the Mexican people, since he hasn't been as tough with US President Donald Trump's anti-Mexican rhetoric as they would've hoped, but he is a pretty good leader.
He had some very inspirational things to say in response to the Mexico City earthquake, calling it "a hard and very painful test for our country." He added that the country has faced "difficult experiences" with earthquakes in the past and that they always deal with them "with commitment and the spirit of solidarity." He then said (and this could be a statue of him someday, if his approval rating ever turns around), "We will stay united, confronting this new challenge together."
