The Great Smoky Mountain Journal

Staff, Wire Reports

Posted: Sunday, January 21, 2018 03:54 PM

BREAKING: 235 Now Confirmed Dead In 7.1 Magnitude Earthquake Jolts Mexico City Collapsing Buildings

UPDATE: 225 People are now confirmed dead from a  7.1 magnitude earthquake that struck near Mexico City Tuesday afternoon.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported that multiple people reportedly were trapped in collapsed buildings.

The death toll from the earthquake has risen to 139 nationwide, with Mexico City Mayor Miguel Angel Mancera reporting 30 people were killed in the capital.

Mexico State Gov. Alfredo del Mazo said the quake killed at least nine people in his state, which borders Mexico City. Del Mazo said a quarry worker was killed from a rock slide due to the quake, and another died after being hit by a falling lamppost.

At least another 64 were killed in the central Mexican state of Morelos, according to officials. Officials in Puebla state reported at least 26 deaths in the central Mexican state following the powerful earthquake.

Rescue workers and volunteers search a building that collapsed after an earthquake in downtown Mexico City, Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2017. A powerful earthquake jolted central Mexico on Tuesday, causing buildings to sway sickeningly in the capital on the anniversary of a 1985 quake that did major damage. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

President Donald Trump tweeted "God bless the people of Mexico City" after news of the earthquake broke, and added that the U.S. is "with you and will be there for you."

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, whose state recently suffered greatly from Hurricane Harvey, tweeted that Texas "will continue to offer any support to aid Mexico in their time of need."

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Earlier in the day buildings across the city held preparation drills on the anniversary of a 1985 quake. That 8.1 quake, which the Los Angeles Times reported lasted between three to five minutes, collapsed hundreds of buildings, left an estimated 10,000 people dead, and left tens of thousands injured or homeless.

A 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck near Mexico City Tuesday afternoon, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said, leaving massive amounts of damage on the anniversary of another quake that left thousands dead.

USGS said the epicenter was near the town of Raboso, about 76 miles southeast of Mexico City.

Thousands of people fled office buildings along the central Reforma Avenue as alarms blared, and traffic came to a halt at the Angel of Independence monument.

Market stall vendor Edith Lopez, 25, said she was in a taxi a few blocks away when the quake struck. She said she saw glass bursting out of the windows of some buildings. She was anxiously trying to locate her children, whom she had left in the care of her disabled mother.

In Mexico City pictures fell from walls, objects were shaken off of flat surfaces and computer monitors toppled over. Some people dove for cover under desks.

Images and videos posted to social media showed destroyed buildings and shaken interiors.

Earlier in the day buildings across the city held preparation drills on the anniversary of a 1985 quake. That 8.1 quake caused massive damage to parts of the city and left thousands dead.

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

The Associated Press contributed to this report.