Oaxaca requests aid after strong Mexico quake damages 1,000 homes

Fallen merchandise is seen on the floor of a shop after an earthquake in Oaxaca, Mexico February 16, 2018, in this image taken from social media. HUMBERTO RAMOS/via REUTERS
Fallen merchandise is seen on the floor of a shop after an earthquake in Oaxaca, Mexico February 16, 2018, in this image taken from social media. HUMBERTO RAMOS/via REUTERS

Thomson Reuters

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's southern state of Oaxaca requested federal emergency funds on Sunday to supply food, shelter and health services in more than 30 municipalities battered by last week's powerful quake in a region still reeling from temblors in September.

The 7.2 magnitude quake on Friday, which did not cause any deaths, had its epicenter about 90 miles (145 km) from the Pacific coast surfer resort of Puerto Escondido. It shook buildings in the capital, sent tremors as far south as Guatemala and set off more than 1,520 aftershocks.

At least 1,000 homes were damaged in Oaxaca, the state's governor, Alejandro Murat, told a Mexican television program on Saturday, higher than earlier estimates of damage.

Media images showed homes, businesses and schools with cracks in their walls and rubble scattered on the ground.

A military helicopter surveying the quake damage crashed in Santiago Jamiltepec on Friday night, killing at least 13 people.

Mexico's Interior Ministry said federal aid would go to towns including Pinotepa Nacional, closest to the epicenter, and Santiago Jamiltepec, which had reported 50 damaged homes along with a church and government building.

Recovery efforts are still being carried out in Oaxaca as well as Mexico City after strong earthquakes in September killed several hundred people and toppled buildings.

(Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon; Editing by Peter Cooney)

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