Death toll from Mexican earthquake rises to 90

The death toll from the powerful earthquake that struck Mexico on Thursday night rose to at least 90 after emergency services in Oaxaca confirmed 71 fatalities in the state.

At least 15 people died in the neighbouring state of Chiapas, authorities said, while four deaths were confirmed in the state of Tabasco to the north.

The 8.1-magnitude quake that struck off the coast of Chiapas was stronger than the devastating 1985 tremor that flattened large parts of Mexico City and killed thousands.

Most of the deaths in Oaxaca were in Juchitan, where some residents continued to sleep outside, fearful of more collapses as strong aftershocks rattled the town, including a 5.2-magnitude jolt early yesterday.

Officials said they had counted nearly 800 aftershocks of all sizes since Thursday and the US geological survey counted nearly 60 with a magnitude of 4.5 or greater.

Enrique Pena Nieto, Mexico’s president, said a third of Juchitan’s homes had collapsed or were uninhabitable.

Teams of soldiers and federal police armed with shovels and sledgehammers fanned out across Juchitan to demolish damaged buildings and lorries began hauling away the many tonnes of rubble.

Maria de Lourdes Quintana Lopez said she could not wait for government help as she oversaw the demolition of her family’s sweet business warehouse.

“We have to work so that we’re not overcome with sadness,” Ms Lopez said.

“We’re not going to wait for the government to do what it has to do.”

On the outskirts of the city, the general hospital settled into its temporary home – a school gymnasium with gurneys parked on the basketball court.

The earthquake had rendered the hospital uninhabitable, so the gym contained a mix of patients from before and after the quake.

Staff at the single-storey hospital moved patients outside when the earthquake struck and had transferred most of those who required special care to other facilities.

Mexico suffered another catastrophe when Hurricane Katia hit the country’s east coast late on Friday.

Two people died in a mudslide in the coastal state of Veracruz, where Katia made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane and was later downgraded to a tropical storm before petering out on Saturday.

Mr Pena Nieto said that authorities were trying to re-establish supplies of water and food and provide medical attention to those who needed it.

He vowed that the government would help to rebuild damaged areas.