On the first day news arose of the earthquake, the first thing that came to mind was my family. My grandfather is a citizen of Oaxaca, one of the major cities that was closest to the epicenter of the quake. After talking to them Sunday night for the first time since the first quake, the damage was put into perspective. Many, including my aunt and uncle, have been left without a stable and secure home to live in. Having visited and experienced the beautiful architecture and people who inhabit the city, it is truly saddening that they met this horrific occurrence that could be life changing.

A string of earthquakes hit Mexico, causing massive damage. The first struck September 8, and was the most powerful quake to hit the country in centuries. There were nearly 100 fatalities from the 8.1 magnitude earthquake. The shock wave spread as far Mexico City and Guatemala City and roughly 50 million people were affected by this disaster. The epicenter was about 600 miles southeast of the capital and 74 miles off the coast.

The next was a 7.1 magnitude earthquake that hit Tuesday, September 19. This caused the collapse of the Mexico City office building with an estimated 50 people inside. This occurred on the anniversary of the 1985 quake that killed an estimated 9,500 in the same area.

The last two quakes occurred on Saturday, September 23. The first was in the morning and measured to be of 6.1 magnitude centered in Oaxaca. The last was a 4.5 magnitude quake that occurred later that night that caused for the devastation of bridges and major highways in the city.

As many do what they can to clean up the rubble, infrastructure was damaged to the point where large scale assistance will be the only way this portion of Mexico can flourish once again.