Alejandra Ramos, a graduate student studying journalism in the Annenberg School, was preparing for her morning classes when she got the notification alert on her phone showing a deadly 7.1 magnitude earthquake had struck Mexico City.
For Ramos, the news hit close to home.
Ramos immediately contacted her friends and family in Mexico City via WhatsApp. Fortunately, her family was safe and sound. However, not everyone in the city experienced the same luck. At least 225 people were killed instantly from the quake.
"It was just shocking to see all the places destroyed where I grew up and worked, " said Ramos in a shaking voice. "The only thing I wanted to do at that moment was to go back home to be with my family and friends."
Arturo Cajal, a second-year Ph.D. mechanical engineering student from Mexico, was also personally affected by the earthquake. Cajal was in a meeting with a professor when messages about the earthquake from his family started to pour in. One of his friends back in Mexico lost everything.
"I called my grandfather and he was crying," said Cajal, "that makes me feel like this is really bad. It's hard to believe."
The Hispanic community makes up 13 percent of USC's total population. According to U.S. News and World Report, Los Angeles has the second largest Hispanic population in the United States.
On Tuesday night, Ramos and Cajal, along with other USC students from Mexico, decided to do something for their city. They created fliers illustrating numerous ways students can donate and help.
Cajal also emailed El Centro Chicano, a department in USC's Division of Student Affairs aimed at helping the Latino community at USC. El Centro Chicano responded and provided them a tent for fundraising on campus today.
"We put the tent in front of Tommy Trojan because people from USC really know this place and it's like the center of the campus," said Cajal. "We are trying to get the attention from most of the people around here."
Jaima Carias, the civic engagement coordinator at USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism, suggests students visit counselors on campus as a resource to help cope with the trauma they have recently experienced.
Similarly, in a shared statement to the USC Community, Carias said, "If you are in a capacity to donate, go ahead and do that. If not, be there for another person. When natural disasters hit, our differences should be put aside."
Ramos, Cajal and friends are trying to get as much help as possible.
"Any kind of help is useful," said Ramos. "We are all here and I know that Americans have been struggling with hurricanes and a lot of things as well. We need to support each other."