No Filipino casualties have been reported so far in the earthquake that rocked Mexico on Tuesday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Wednesday.
In a statement, the DFA said the 7.1-magnitude tremor that hit central Mexico left many structures, including the building that housed the Philippine Embassy, crumbling and badly damaged.
Philippine Ambassador to Mexico Eduardo De Vega said the staff of the embassy were safe.
“We are all a bit shaken but otherwise all of us from the Embassy are all right,” De Vega said in a text message to Foreign Affairs Sec. Alan Peter Cayetano.
De Vega said he and most of the 11-member staff rushed out of the embassy when debris started falling down the walls and ceiling shortly after the earthquake struck.
He said the embassy occupies the first two floors of an eight-story office building in the Cuauhtemoc neighborhood near the city center.
Cayetano sympathized with Mexico, which was struck by a strong quake for the second time within the last two weeks. The latest earthquake has claimed 138 lives so far according to the Mexican government.
“The people of Mexico are again in our thoughts and prayers today,” Cayetano said.
“We offer our sympathies to the Mexican government and to those who lost their loved ones in this tragedy,” he added.