an intertidal zone and the event caused widespread mortality in a number of species living in the area such as algae and shellfish. Death toll To this day, the death toll has been in dispute. About 5,000 bodies were recovered from the debris and represent the total of legally certified deaths but does not include those who were missing and never recovered. Reports have numbered the dead anywhere from 5,000 to 30,000 (claimed by a number of citizens' groups) to 45,000 claimed by the National Seismological Service. However, the most commonly cited figures are around 10,000. While high as an absolute number, it compares to other earthquakes of similar strength in Asia and other parts of Latin America where death tolls have run between 66,000 and 242,000 for earthquakes of magnitude 7.8 or above. Part of the explanation for that was the hour in which the earthquake struck, approximately 7:20 am, when people were awake but not in the many schools and office buildings that were severely damaged. However, the death toll was great enough to require the use of the IMSS baseball field as a morgue, using ice to conserve bodies for identification. The main reason that the figures have been disputed is the government's response to the tragedy. President Miguel de la Madrid ordered a news blackout and did not address the situation at all for 39 hours after the event. When the government did give estimates of the number killed, they ranged from 7,000 to 35,000. Consequently, most of the populace believes that the true numbers have never been revealed. According to government figures, approximately 250,000 people lost their homes directly due to the earthquake. Unofficial sources put that figure much higher. Some sources say that more than 50,000 families lost their homes. INEGI reports that 700,000 people in Mexico City and the suburbs in the State of Mexico lost their homes. Response In the hours and days immediately after the first shock, there was an enormous response and solidarity among the city population of 18 million people. Ordinary citizens organized brigades to help with rescue efforts and to provide food, clothing and emotional support to the homeless. Patients had to be moved from damaged hospitals, especially the National Medical Center. Many of these patients were very ill. 1,900 patients were successfully moved from here, without any deaths, in just four hours. More than 4,000 people were