Road In Mexico Looks As If It is ‘Breathing’ After 7.1 Magnitude Earthquake [Watch]

Shortly after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck Mexico, killing 248, locals were stopped in their tracks by a “breathing” road. The tarmac cracked and heaved as if the quake had given it lungs. At the time, the development scared locals. Minds are still boggled as the phenomenon has yet to be explained in scientific terms.

The cracked road is located in Moreles, Mexico, and was pulsing after the initial earthquake. As the video below reveals, people ran down the road but then stopped once they saw the unstable surface. Many were too nervous to cross it; others gathered around the phenomenon to watch it.

The second powerful earthquake to hit Mexico within a period of weeks was centered in Puebla state, where it killed 40 people. Across the nation, nearly 250 were killed. This disaster occurred 12 days after another quake which killed nearly 100 people in southern Mexico.

Following the tragedy, rescuers began digging for survivors in the rubble. Many volunteered to rescue victims at a collapsed school, where 21 children between the ages of seven and 13 and five adults were crushed to death. Many children remain missing. At least 11 children and one teacher have been rescued from the rubble, reports The Sun.

Credit: Vox

The cause of the “breathing road” is somewhat of a mystery. Commentators online have suggested everything from “soil liquefaction” which results when water is squeezed out of the cracks to an entire “sinkhole” being underneath the rippling tarmac. The cause has not yet been determined by scientists, either.

Oddly enough, the latest earthquake in Mexico hit on the anniversary of a huge quake in 1985 that killed more than 10,000 people. It was the country’s deadliest ever. Reportedly, the 7.1 earthquake shook the ground and crumbled buildings two hours after the national earthquake drill.

Though the natural disaster is tragic, the mysterious “breathing” road is quite phenomenal. View it in the video below:

h/t The Sun, Daily Mail