Mexico Earthquake Update

Sam Schaffer

A deadly earthquake rocked Mexico on Tuesday, here’s what you need to know:

The death toll continues to rise in Mexico as search and rescue efforts persist in the aftermath of a magnitude 7.1 earthquake.

The Guardian reports that the quake hit on Tuesday afternoon shortly after 1 p.m. local time. The earthquake caused violent, prolonged shaking, which made buildings crumble trapping people inside.

As of Friday, the Panam Post reports that the Mexican president has said, “The rescue efforts continue in Mexico city; they have not been suspended.” Though it is past the 72-hour mark, which is when dehydration becomes too severe for the body to survive, authorities say that as long as there are signs of life under the rubble, the search will continue.

The Associated Press reports that as of 12:20 p.m. Friday, the official death toll has risen to 286, more than half of which were in the capital. The city government said that 60 people had been rescued since the quake hit.

There has been a lot of confusion surrounding Frida Sofia, a girl said to be alive and trapped under the rubble of a school in southern Mexico. She became somewhat of a symbol of hope reported the AP; now the AP has quoted Navy Assistant Secretary Enrique Sarmiento saying that all of the schoolchildren have been accounted for and Sofia is not one of them. “We want to emphasize that we have no knowledge about the report that emerged with the name of a girl. We do not believe – we are sure – it was not a reality.”