The greatest catastrophe ever
suffered by Mexico City – 1985 Earthquake
Manuel Magaña Contreras, Excelsior (Mexico), September 20, 1998
Recalling the greatest tragedy ever endured in Mexico City, 13 years ago,
which - in just a few seconds - cost thousands of human lives, destroyed homes,
buildings and installations vital to the functioning of the capital, and caused
injuries to countless people, has the explicit purpose to point out once again
that we are living within a seismic zone and that while it is not possible to
avoid quakes, we can at least reduce their consequences, provided that
preventative measures are actually enforced.
More than anything else it must be clear that the earthquake of tragic
Thursday, September 19, 1985, and its replica on the evening of the 20th,
showed us that in the Mexican capital we have to protect ourselves from the
dangers that arise from an out-of-proportion urban gigantism, the result of an
artificial growth that the city has fallen prey to and that has placed us, its
inhabitants, on a razor's edge.
Something else came across clearly when confronted with the dramatic
magnitude of what happened, and that is that 'neighbours
together with their neighbours, animated by healthy
solidarity, organized spontaneously and efficiently, were able to save lives,
put an end to misfortune, rebuild the city and create a promising future.'
We must not allow the experience that came from these days of sorrow to
be lost, days which also saw the expression of international solidarity for our
people, suffering from destruction which could have been less severe if, as in
the case of the two residential complexes, the Tlatelolco
Unit and the Presidente Juárez Urban Ensemble, they had not been so lightly
constructed because the security of the residents of these buildings took
second place to the glorification of town planning politics.
It is symptomatic that the data shows that almost all of the buildings
damaged and completely collapsed during the ill-fated
The figures
Of all the scenes of terror in which tears mixed with cries for help,
sorrow, etc., what survives is the coldness of the numbers.
Officially, the records which were put at the disposal of the
authorities listed 4,541 casualties. Nevertheless, non-official versions put
the number of people killed at more than 30,000.
Assistance to the injured required the staffing of 131 first-aid
stations, and even so a greater number of such installations would have been
necessary. Figures finally provided by the
'The flea' and 'the moles'
One of the lessons we mustn't squander is the example shown by neighbours when it came to saving people trapped under the
wreckage. In the Tlatelolco Unit,
especially in the 'Nuevo León' building, many
people young and old came to help trapped people and they were called 'the
moles'. From the Merced zone, a very short person by the name of Sariñana, a native of the state of Morelos,
became famous and was nicknamed 'the flea', saving many people who would
otherwise have suffered a prolonged death, had they not be saved by 'the flea'.
[In the aftermath of the earthquake] As we walked, Ethel Carrillo and the writer of these lines, through the
zones of the Guerrero and Santa María la Redonda colonies, the historical center, the Tlatelolco Unit, the Morelos,
the Roma etc., and everywhere there were sorrowful faces, the howling of
sirens, ambulances rushing past, smoke from collapsed buildings and their
damaged electrical installations, tears, people that had lost their homes etc.,
were the most characteristic features of the tragedy.
At the Tlatelolco Unit, members
of Plácido Domingo's family lost their lives under
the debris from the crashing collapse of the 'Nuevo León'
building. The great singer took part in the rescue of the trapped, but
unfortunately he lost his loved ones. He was hoping to save his uncle and aunt Angel Embil and Paquita de Embil and his cousins
Julio Agustín Pinilla and Agustín García Embil. From this sorrow was born the artist's generosity to
help the victims economically, with his performances.
International assistance
Help from fellow citizens from the states of the (Mexican) Republic and
from people and institutes from abroad did not have to be waited for. The
assistance was immediate. Aid and relief brigades came from Germany, Belgium,
Algeria, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Spain, the United States,
France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Israel, Nicaragua, Panama, Switzerland,
Venezuela, etc. Between
681 tons of medicines were sent, and 353.5 tons of instruments and
medical equipment; 1637.6 tons of food, 1432.5 tons of machinery and vehicles,
137.3 tons of accessories, 1253.7 tons of clothing, blankets and camping
equipment, 43 tons of other equipment and 159.8 tons of rescue equipment.
The above does not take into account the dogs trained to locate people
under the ruins. Various heads of states travelled to
the city, among them the President of Brazil, José Sarney,
the President of Venezuela, Jaime Lusinschi, the head
of the Spanish government, Felipe González, Alan García, from Peru, Nancy Reagan, the wife of Ronald Reagan,
President of the United States, who brought a gift of one million dollars.
The earthquake of
Manuel Magaña Contreras, Excelsior (
The greatest ever natural disaster
in the Federal District
[...] Plácido Domingo, the world-famous tenor,
was hit by the tragedy. He had hoped to find alive his uncle and aunt Angel Embil and Paquita de Embil and his cousins,
Julio Agustín Pinilla and Agustín García Embil, trapped under the 'Nuevo León'
building. He grabbed pick-axe and spade in search of his relatives. The efforts
were in vain and from sorrow stemmed the generosity of the artist to help the
victims. With his exceptional voice and thanks to benefit performances, he was
able to collect funds to help the unfortunate ones. [...]
Translation by Christine Roche and Anne Lawson
Related articles:
Domingo,
in Mexico, Cancels Chicago 'Otello' New York
Times -
Mexico
City tragedy puts Domingo in a leading role Chicago Sun-Times - September
26, 1985
'I
will never forget that scene... My God, I felt so useless'
Placido Domingo's Mexico City Tragedy San Francisco
Chronicle -
Quake
tragedy could change Domingo's career Reuters -
Domingo's
search for relatives fails Associated Press - October 7, 1985
Placido Domingo Plans Concerts for Quake Aid New York
Times -
Placido Domingo: 'I was a witness to tragedy'
Quake
aid reaches $800,000
Renovations
a key win for Mexico's homeless
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