Advertisement

WATCH: Tourists panic as huge waves rock boats during Mexican earthquake

Sightseers on board boats floating down one of Mexico City’s canals began to panic when a 7.1 magnitude earthquake created waves across the water.

The calm water suddenly becomes a torrent as the tremor hits, rocking all the vessels in the water.

“Oh my God, this is a bad idea to be on this boat,” someone says off camera.

The tourists were in shock as their boat was jolted by the tremor. Source: Supplied
The tourists were in shock as their boat was jolted by the tremor. Source: Supplied

A man stands, presumably holding a paddle. He keeps his balance as boats around him bob up and down in the waves.

Another man in a white t-shirt on a different boat desperately clings to the side as his vessel rocks.

The seriousness of the moment doesn’t seem to faze those on board the boat filming though.

One man, who appears to be holding a beer, asks if anyone’s recording.

The boats sway, but luckily no one is seen falling into the water. Source: Supplied
The boats sway, but luckily no one is seen falling into the water. Source: Supplied

Death toll stands at 217

The death toll from the Mexico earthquake has risen to 217, including 22 children found after their school collapsed.

Thirty other children and 12 teachers are still missing after the powerful earthquake, which registed at 7.1 magnitude.

That toll is expected to rise as rescue teams search through the rubble of collapsed buildings.

The earthquake struck on the 32nd anniversary of a massive earthquake that killed thousands in the capital in 1985.

A scene of devastation. Source: AAP
A scene of devastation. Source: AAP

The state of Morelos, just south of Mexico City, was also hard hit with 55 killed.

Dozens of police, rescue workers and neighbours dug through the wreckage of collapsed buildings in Mexico City.

At least one survivor was pulled from a collapsed building in the city's busy Condesa neighbourhood, and another person was rescued from a six-story apartment building nearby.

  • School collapse during Mexico earthquake kills 22 children

  • Terrifying moment people run for their lives as buildings topple in Mexican earthquake

In Cuernavaca, a city in Morelos that is a popular destination for weekend visitors from Mexico City, there were reports on local radio of people trapped beneath collapsed buildings. Mexican TV and social media showed cars crushed by debris.

"We got out really fast, leaving everything as it was and just left," said Rosaura Suarez, as she stood with a crowd on the street in Mexico City.

Mexican stocks and the peso currency dropped on news of the earthquake, and Mexico's stock exchange suspended trading.

Police called for calm and cordoned off streets with grotesquely twisted buildings, their reinforcing steel poking out from concrete.

The epicenter of Tuesday's quake was located in the central state of Puebla, the US Geological Survey said.