Wednesday, September 20, 2017

More than 230 dead in Mexico quake as rescue teams desperately try to free trapped children

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rescuers looking for survivors in Mexico city (9/19/17)

The recent catastrophic 7.1 earthquake –the second one in the last month– that devastated Mexico city and surrounding areas has been said to have resulted in the death of at least 230 people and destroyed at least 44 buildings this past Tuesday. Mexico City is built on a former lake bed, therefore the soil isn't strong, making the city more susceptible to devastation. Programs such as Save the Children in Mexico and many other volunteers have been trying to help the authorities in their rescue missions. Trump expressed his condolences and offered assistance in deploying search and rescue teams. The U.S. department of state also stated that "we stand ready to provide assistance should our neighbors request our help." One primary school in particular collapsed, causing the deaths 21 children and 4 teachers. Due to the dire efforts of rescue workers, 11 people have been rescued, but 2 students and 1 teacher still remain missing. They also located 5 people 10 feet under the debris using a thermal scanner. Another building that was drastically effected by the earthquake is Mexico city's airport, in which shocked and panicked crowds were running to escape the falling debris.




What do you believe might be the best options toward attending to the psychological detriment that many people are facing in Mexico and surrounding middle-american countries? Do you think the United States should provide more assistance? How long do you think it will take Mexico to recuperate their losses and recover from the shock of the now multiple earthquakes? Do these earthquakes make you more afraid of the possibility of a long-due earthquake happening here in the bay area in the near future?




2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think since this disaster was so close towards home, I believe the best option is to prepare for when we have our next big earthquake. If we can make the public more aware, we can minimize the lives lost in events such as these. I believe that America should be able to divert some resources, but I think our main focus is to recover from this year's tropical storms that have hit our mainland. Since Mexico is a third-world country, it will take them much longer time to recover than if it San Francisco. Saying that, we are expecting an earthquake to hit us in the future.

Anonymous said...

The US had sent over a search and rescue team over to Mexico. As far as the safety of many of Mexico citizens who may be trapped under the destruction of this earthquake I believe we are doing enough. But as Josh said we should not just worry about the earthquake that had just hit Mexico. There is a earthquake that is due to hit the United States possibly in the near future and this earthquake should indicate that we need precautions to be prepared for an earthquake. I read online that Mexico has a warning system set in place to warn those who are farther from the center of the earthquake about its approach. Although its harder for the west coast to implement this since the fault is inland, I do not see why it would not be a beneficial investment.