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At least 220 dead in powerful earthquake in Central Mexico: 30 children reported missing

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A 7.1 magnitude earthquake has reportedly killed more than 220 people, including 20 school children, and caused serious damage in Mexico City, the Guardian reports. The magnitude 7.1 quake, the deadliest to hit the nation since 1985, struck shortly after 1pm local time, causing violent, prolonged shaking which flattened buildings and sent masonry tumbling onto streets, crushing cars and people in the capital Mexico City and surrounding areas. Emergency crews and ordinary people were digging with their bare hards through rubble in search of trapped survivors after a powerful earthquake stuck central Mexico on Tuesday, toppling dozens of buildings and killing at least 224 people. Power blackouts left much of the capital in darkness. Many people remained outdoors, fearful of aftershocks. It was the second major temblor to hit Mexico in two weeks and came on the anniversary of the 1985 quake that devastated Mexico City. Tuesday's earthquake came more than one week after a magnitude-8.1 earthquake struck off the southern coast of the country, killing at least 90. The epicenter of the 7.1-magnitude earthquake was 2.8 miles (4.5 kilometers) east-northeast of San Juan Raboso and 34.1 miles (55 km) south-southwest of the city of Puebla, in Puebla state, according to the US Geological Survey, CNN says. The source says rescuers searched for survivors through the night after the powerful earthquake. Among the twisted concrete and steel ruin of the Enrique Rebsamen school, soldiers and firefighters found 22 dead children and two adults, while another 30 children and 12 adults were missing, President Enrique Pena Nieto said. Initially, some thought it was a drill when the ground began to shake on Tuesday. This was the day for it, after all. Each year on September 19, cities across Mexico stage emergency disaster simulations and evacuations that bring people out in droves. The drill falls on the anniversary of an 8.0-magnitude earthquake that shook Mexico's capital in 1985, burying nearly 10,000 people amid its rubble. The annual drill began in Mexico City around 11 a.m. on Tuesday, just like it does every year. The alert went out over radio, television, phones and public loud speakers. People left homes, offices and shops and headed to designated safe areas promoted days ahead of time. Then, around two hours later, the real thing struck.