«Gauze, water, alcohol, spikes or shovels, and one paramedic.» The construction workers of a six-story building on the intersection of Álvaro Obregón and Yucatán, in one of the most popular and busy neighborhoods of Mexico City, yelled for help.
With white dust from the building’s debris in their hair, a wavering voice, and all the enthusiasm to save their colleagues, they turned the tragedy into a moment of unity between strangers, neighbors, and the first responders. No one asked for names or rank, they just witnessed how hundreds of locals and commuters alike arrived at the spot to offer their help.
This public reaction started just a few minutes past 13:14 p.m. when a 7.1 earthquake shook Mexico’s capital. According to the National Seismological Service of Mexico (SSN), the epicenter was located on the border of the states of Puebla and Morelos just 120 km (approximately 75 miles) from Mexico City.
* Photo Gustavo Pineda/ CC Noticias.
This epicenter, so close to the capital, resulted in severe damages to several boroughs of the city. This inevitably brought back the ghost of the 1985 earthquake that ironically occurred on September the 19th as well. The SSN indicated in their 20:30 report that there have been about 11 replicas following the telluric movement.
Amidst the chasm of a collapsed building, neighbors and first responders would shout to coordinate assistance in the most efficient and fastest way possible in this quarter of the city known as “Roma”. Yuli, a hairstylist, was giving a class with her colleagues in the second floor of the six-story building. «We crawled out the only way we could. Between the dust and the bricks. My throat hurts, really bad, and I survived. Still, I don’t know what happened to my colleagues from the six floor.»
* Yuli, survivor. Photo CC Noticias.
On Sonora street, near the collapse, the owner of a hardware store provided spikes, hammers, shovels, grippers, trolleys, and anything that hundreds of strangers asked to help rescue people at another nearby collapsed building.
* Photo CC Noticias.
This was on the intersection of Amsterdam and Laredo, where rescue teams arrived before ambulances, law enforcement, and civilian first responders. Hundreds of civilians formed a human chain to remove the debris from the building that collapsed in front of their eyes. «Ssshhh! Silence! Raise your hands! Please! Silence!» was the common call the brigades asked so they could listen to the cries of help of any possible survivors.
* Photo: CC Noticias.
The building chunks were huge, despite the efforts to remove them, the debris seemed endless. Each brigadier improvised with anything they had near them and, just in a couple of minutes, this chain of solidarity was settled. By word of mouth each of the brigadiers were claimed to «Be careful with the glasses! Turn off your phones!» It was 2:44 p.m., an hour and some minutes after the earthquake when the Red Cross squad arrived at the place. The crowd cheered and clapped with enthusiasm for a couple of seconds. Soon, a strong stench of gas invaded the area and about five blocks around.
The spirit of solidarity and teamwork prevailed at Miguel Alemán Viaduct, not far from the other previous spots, where another building also collapsed. A countless amount of people gathered around as a huge humanitarian squad to work quickly and help people trapped inside the building that flopped after the earthquake. «They rescued four people», a woman informed while the witnesses applauded the achievement.
* Photo: CC Noticias.
Many donated water to help to hydrate the rescuers. The paramedics received several first aid kits and tarps to cover the brigadiers from the rays of the sun. Only a few knew each other, but they communicated with just with a simple stare. Army members, the Mexican Navy, and first responders collaborated with the civilians to help remove the debris from the building and try saving the lives of possible victims trapped inside.
* Photo: CC Noticias.
This scenario was replicated throughout the 44 buildings that collapsed throughout the city after the intense earthquake. Luis Felipe Puente, chief of the National Civil Protection, informed today at 11:50 a.m that the official death toll so far is: 91 in Mexico City, 69 in Morelos, 43 in Puebla, 12 in Estado de Mexico, 4 in Guerrero, and 1 in Oaxaca (a state that was devastated just 12 days before this earthquake).
The states that reported the most severe damages were Morelos and Mexico City. President Enrique Peña Nieto announced the activation of all the emergency protocols in all the damaged regions and offered an interactive map where people can find all donation centers, hospitals, and shelters for those in need.
