San Luis man lives through Mexico
Restaurant owner holding fundraiser today
A San Luis, Ariz., restaurant owner was on vacation in Mexico City when the 7.1 magnitude earthquake hit Tuesday. Abraham Andrade, owner of Rolls and Bowls, described the temblor and what he saw in the aftermath as “shocking.”
He saw buildings that had collapsed, but he also saw people coming together to help victims and search for survivors. As of Thursday, 274 had been confirmed dead, but the fatality count was expected to climb as more bodies were recovered from the rubble.
“It was very strong, very shocking,” Andrade told the Yuma Sun.
He was initially going to stay to help, but he decided the best thing would be to come home and raise money for victims and search efforts. Today, he is holding a fundraiser at his restaurant located at 1627 Juan Sanchez Blvd., with 50 percent of all purchases to be donated.
He’s also opened a Go-FundMe account (www. gofundme.com/lovefor-mexico), but he’s still looking for an organization that will use the donations in the best way.
“Just like there are good people, there are bad people,” he explained.
Andrade arrived in Mexico City on Sept. 15, just in time to celebrate the nation’s independence the following day. He planned to travel to several Mexican states, including Puebla and Oaxaca, where a magnitude 8.1 earthquake had ravaged the region a week earlier. He planned to go all the way to Guatemala before heading back home Oct. 7.
Two friends were supposed to join him, but they decided not to go after the Sept. 8 earthquake. They were afraid of the aftershocks, they told him.
“I armed myself with courage,” Andrade said, and he went ahead with his plans, even if it meant traveling alone. He made it to the Zócalo, the main square in Mexico City, for the “cry of independence.”
On Tuesday, the day the earthquake struck, he went to a Oaxacan restaurant in the city’s historical center. The first floor was full, so he was seated on the second floor, where just another table had customers.
Halfway through his meal he felt weird. He thought he must be feeling dizzy because everything seemed to be shaking. It was 1:15 p.m.
Then it dawned on him that he was experiencing an earthquake. He and the other people on that floor looked at one another before they rushed downstairs and outside.
“I didn’t even grab my phone or wallet,” he said.
Ironically, just that morning, the city had conducted an earthquake drill. Following the 1985 earthquake, the city regularly practices evacuation drills.
And curiously, Andrade pointed out, Sept. 19 was the anniversary of the devastating magnitude 8.0 earthquake that struck Mexico City in 1985 and killed about 5,000 people.
“That morning a friend called me and told me there was going to be a seismic alert, so don’t be scared. It happened two hours before the earthquake occurred,” he recalled.
With the world shaking around him, Andrade ran into the middle of the street, afraid that buildings would collapse on him.
“The lamps were moving from one side to another, the buildings were moving, the trees were moving,” he said. “People were crying, screaming, running. It was chaos.”
He started hearing sirens everywhere, from ambulances and police, and helicopters were flying above.
Then he had an odd reaction. “I started laughing. They had warned me this would happen!”
Eventually Andrade headed to the Zócalo, which is clear of buildings. He spent three hours there, waiting for things to calm down.
He tried calling his friend, Arturo, but he wasn’t answering the phone. It had been his first day at a new job. He later found out that Arturo’s work building had collapsed but he managed to escape before it came down. Unfortunately, he no longer has a job since his workplace has been destroyed.
Finally reaching Arturo, Andrade went to join his friend. They helped with rescue efforts near a hospital and in the areas hardest hit, Colonias Condesa y Roma.
“The buildings are really old there and couldn’t withstand the shaking,” Andrade said, noting that when the earthquake hit, he was in an area with reinforced buildings.
Just the day before, An- drade and his friends had gone to two bars in Condesa. Both collapsed.
Although tragic, Andrade was “impressed by the solidarity of the people and the desire to help by bringing food or working. I didn’t see much government. It was very touching.”
He no longer wanted to stay by himself in the third-floor apartment he had rented and went to stay with Arturo. He initially planned to stay there but then thought it better to return home so he could help collect donations.
He arrived in San Luis at about 11 p.m. Wednesday with “a knot in his throat.”
“I thank God that I was able to return to my family and friends. I could have been one of the many victims,” Andrade said.
For more information about today’s fundraiser, the GoFundMe account or how to help, contact Andrade at (928) 276-8114.