Mexico City, Before and After the Earthquake
A 7.1 magnitude earthquake on Tuesday killed more than 155 people in Mexico City and toppled dozens of buildings. In addition, hundreds of structures sustained significant damage and now pose a risk to rescue workers and residents.
The devastation was spread throughout Mexico’s capital and at least 60 buildings collapsed or were significantly damaged, according to official counts. Mexico’s National Center for Disaster Prevention, Cenapred, has recruited engineers and architects to inspect structures around the city. More than 1,480 residents have requested inspections.
Before and After
All sorts of buildings were destroyed across the city — new and old, commercial and residential. The photograph immediately below, for instance, shows a five-story residential building near the Miguel Alemán Viaduct, in the Del Valle neighborhood, with a hair and nail salon on the ground floor. The other images show the range of structures affected.
The severity of the damage is not
immediately evident in many structures.
Early assessments of the building below, for example, noted that it was tilting and sinking into the ground. The volunteer inspector from the National Autonomous University of Mexico wrote that it was possible that the structure was “lying on nearby buildings, causing them damage.”
This building also had severe structural damage, and the surveyor was unable to enter.
Many other structures suffered damage to their facades, like the commercial building below, in the Juárez neighborhood, near Mexico City’s historic center.
Assessing the damage is a complex task. The house below was considered at risk of collapse, because a load-bearing wall was severely compromised.
But a preliminary analysis of this other building suggested that inspectors diverged on whether the damage could be repaired.
Many residents are also dealing with less severe damage, including broken windows and walls with holes and cracks.
“People are worried that some of the affected buildings could collapse anytime” said Victorio Hernández, an insurance broker who has been organizing volunteer cleanup crews via Facebook. “There are many buildings that are near collapse. They need to be inspected to check if they remain habitable,” he said.
