MEXICO CITY (Reuters) — Rescue workers working against the odds in Mexico City on Thursday (September 21) received reinforcements from USAID amidst a rising death toll and dwindling hope of finding people alive more than 48 hours after a deadly quake.
At least 60 survivors have been pulled from disaster sites in Mexico City since Tuesday’s (September 19) 7.1-magnitude quake.
As of late Thursday, 273 people were confirmed dead, and nearly 2 thousand injured.
The chance of survival is falling with each passing hour, but officials vowed to press on using dogs, motion detectors and heat-seeking equipment to detect victims who may still be alive.
Mexico’s president reported that there could still be people alive in 10 collapsed buildings in Mexico City.
Concentrating efforts on these areas, 67 US search and rescue experts and five dogs will work alongside local rescue crews.
Colombia is also sending 31 individuals and tonnes of technical equipment that will be dispersed in quake-stricken areas in Mexico City, Puebla and Morelos.
This was Mexico’s deadliest earthquake in 32 years, with the death toll currently standing at 233.
Parts of Mexico City, home to some 20 million people, are built on an ancient lake bed that trembles easily in a quake.
