Return to Transcripts main page

American Morning

Mexican Earthquake Claims 23 So Far

Aired January 22, 2003 - 07:08   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


BILL HEMMER, ANCHOR: Quickly to Mexico City right now, the deadly quake striking there last night. Twenty-three dead so far. The quake hit near the city of Colima -- that's west central Mexico -- last evening right around 8 p.m. local time.
Our Gretchen Peters is with the Christian Science Monitor. She joins us now by way of telephone in Mexico City.

Gretchen, good morning to you. The fallout today, as we stand now, is what?

GRETCHEN PETERS, "CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR:" The total death count so far, as you said, is 23. Officials are saying that death toll may rise all over the course of the morning as emergency teams reach more remote areas.

Some highways have been damaged in the western states of Colima and Jalisco, which, they say, is hampering efforts to reach possible victims of the quake.

Emergency workers are already treating more than 100 injured in the states of Colima and Jalisco, and they're saying the shaking, obviously, was felt as far away as Mexico City, some 500 kilometers away, which sent tens of thousands of people fleeing into the streets, though it caused no major damage.

This was the largest earthquake to hit Mexico since a magnitude 8.1 quake killed more than 10,000 in 1985. So authorities generally are saying that there could have been far higher casualties in this incident.

HEMMER: Silver lining there. Gretchen Peters, by way of telephone in Mexico City. Again, the numbers as they stand right now, 23 dead. As Gretchen pointed out, those numbers could go higher, certainly something we're keeping on today.

Gretchen, thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired January 22, 2003 - 07:08   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, ANCHOR: Quickly to Mexico City right now, the deadly quake striking there last night. Twenty-three dead so far. The quake hit near the city of Colima -- that's west central Mexico -- last evening right around 8 p.m. local time.
Our Gretchen Peters is with the Christian Science Monitor. She joins us now by way of telephone in Mexico City.

Gretchen, good morning to you. The fallout today, as we stand now, is what?

GRETCHEN PETERS, "CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR:" The total death count so far, as you said, is 23. Officials are saying that death toll may rise all over the course of the morning as emergency teams reach more remote areas.

Some highways have been damaged in the western states of Colima and Jalisco, which, they say, is hampering efforts to reach possible victims of the quake.

Emergency workers are already treating more than 100 injured in the states of Colima and Jalisco, and they're saying the shaking, obviously, was felt as far away as Mexico City, some 500 kilometers away, which sent tens of thousands of people fleeing into the streets, though it caused no major damage.

This was the largest earthquake to hit Mexico since a magnitude 8.1 quake killed more than 10,000 in 1985. So authorities generally are saying that there could have been far higher casualties in this incident.

HEMMER: Silver lining there. Gretchen Peters, by way of telephone in Mexico City. Again, the numbers as they stand right now, 23 dead. As Gretchen pointed out, those numbers could go higher, certainly something we're keeping on today.

Gretchen, thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com