https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_Guayas_earthquake

I am beside myself.

Oh gosh

Nasty. Was that your former home territory Annie? Any old friends/family you know of affected?

My home territory, Quito, is in the highlands, far north of the epicenter, and appears to have been unaffected.

I do have some distant relatives in Cuenca, one of the cities most affected. Hopefully they are unharmed. It's also a lovely city to visit, with a rich cultural heritage, so that's upsetting too.

Glad to hear your family are safe.
It's hard to know what to say when tragic things like this happen. I can imagine that it has affected you. I remember being surprised at my own reaction a few years back when a bad bushfire devastated a country town that we liked to visit. It felt weird to be so impacted when I didn't know any of the many who had died (it later turned out I did know a friend of a friend) yet the loss was really hard to take.
My thoughts and prayers are with you and the people there.

What stile said, Fanfie. Could not have put it any better

Thanks, guys.

Sometimes we are reminded of how fragile everything is at the worst possible time.