Sad, worried, inconsolable': Earthquakes trigger anxiety in Puerto Rico, post-Hurricane Maria

Editor's Note: This article, originally published on Jan. 8, has been updated to include the aftershock earthquake that occurred on Saturday, Jan. 11.

After the worst earthquake in more than a century killed one person and triggered an islandwide blackout in Puerto Rico, many people like Molty Nazario's wife couldn't find the strength to go back into their homes.

"It was very shocking. Our mirrors, our drawers, our paintings fell out," Nazario, 47, a high school math teacher and a community activist, said. "People are sad, worried and many are inconsolable. My family is very nervous and my wife is very affected, she doesn't even want to be inside our house."

• As if the 6.4-magnitude quake on Tuesday that destroyed schools, churches and homes wasn't enough, it has been followed by more than 80 aftershocks. The biggest aftershock happened on Saturday morning.

At around 9 a.m. local time, a 5.9-magnitude shock caused more damage, mainly in areas around the southern coast where hundreds of homes and schools had already collapsed from Tuesday's temblor.

The series of earthquakes come two years after Hurricane Maria hit in September 2017, the worst natural disaster in the island's modern history.