Earthquake In Mexico City, 1985

On September 15th of 1985 Mexico City had one of the worst earthquakes in history. This earthquake had a magnitude of 8.1, one of the strongest earthquakes that ever hit this area. This is an event that isn’t spoken about a lot because of the government’s involvement with the aftermath which was little to none. 

With this incident, there were about 10,000 deaths, 30,000 people were injured, and around 250,000 people were left homeless. There were also more than 400 buildings that collapsed and many were damaged. The crazy part is that the day right after there was an aftershock with a magnitude of 7.5 almost the same as the original shake. 

Many people were outraged with this event because the government did little to nothing to aid its citizens. The government was often saying that they would help their citizens but in this event, they lied and left people to suffer for days without water or electricity. Mexicos president at the time was Miguel de la Madrid who was under fire because of his lack of responsibility in terms of helping his people. In the beginning, he was rejecting help from other countries and instead said that Mexico didn’t need help from outside sources because the damage wasn’t that bad. This led to many citizens having to find solutions for themselves and rebuild their communities at their own pace. The government was also paying more attention to the areas where tourists would be visiting which would cause conflict with the peripheral zones because they weren’t receiving any help.

 This event goes to show the way in which the government is corrupt. Not only does this show that they only care about the places that would generate wealth for the country but also that they don’t care about the citizens who live in other zones because they don’t offer them the same opportunities. 

Works Cited

Adler, David. “The Mexico City Earthquake, 30 Years on: Have Its Lessons Been Forgotten?” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, September 18, 2015. https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/sep/18/mexico-city-earthquake-30-years-lessons. 

History.com Editors. “1985 Mexico City Earthquake.” History.com. A&E Television Networks, November 9, 2009. https://www.history.com/topics/natural-disasters-and-environment/1985-mexico-city-earthquake. 

By: Penelophe Pintor