32 years ago today, one of the greatest tragedies in the history of our country shook a society that had to face the ruthless force of nature paying a very high price.
The inhabitants of Mexico City remember this date as an event that made them see their great vulnerability, but at the same time as a fact that highlighted the solidarity among Mexicans.
The 1985 Mexico City earthquake struck in the early morning of 19 September at 07:17:50 (CST) with a moment magnitude of 8.0 and a Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent).
The event caused serious damage to the Greater Mexico City area and the deaths of at least 5,000 people. The sequence of events included a foreshock of magnitude 5.2 that occurred the prior May, the mainshock on 19 September, and two large aftershocks.
The first of these occurred on 20 September with a magnitude of 7.5 and the second occurred seven months later on 30 April 1986 with a magnitude of 7.0.
They were located off the coast along the Middle America Trench, more than 350 kilometres (220 mi) away, but the city suffered major damage due to its large magnitude and the ancient lake bed that Mexico City sits on.
The event caused between three and four billion USD in damage as 412 buildings collapsed and another 3,124 were seriously damaged in the city.
Heavily damaged buildings in Mexico City, 1985. (AP Photo/David Tenenbaum)
SMT Newsroom with information from Google
