Mexico’s legendary ‘mole’ rescuers dig deep again, this time on home turf
The team known as Los Topos has forged a reputation for heroism around the world, from ground zero to Nepal
After earning fame burrowing into piles of rubble in disasters the world over, including the 2001 attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York, Mexico’s “mole” rescuers are on tragically familiar ground, pulling people from ruins in their home city.
The moles, Los Topos in Spanish, formed as a volunteer search and rescue group in the aftermath of the devastating quake that struck Mexico City in 1985, saving lives in the working-class neighbourhood of Tlatelolco where there had been a poor government response.
They became known as fearless workers, putting their lives at risk to help others and travelling to disasters as far afield as Haiti, Nepal and the Philippines.
Now, they are dealing with another deadly quake on home turf in a test of what they have learned over the years and Mexico City’s progress in disaster preparedness.