Guayaquil, Ecuador — Although her parents haven’t heard directly from her, Camas resident and 2013 Camas High graduate, Paige Jackson, who is currently serving an 18-month LDS mission in Ecuador, has been accounted for, and is safe following the largest earthquake to hit the region since 1979.

President Maxsimo Torres, who heads the Ecuador Guayaquil South LDS mission (where Jackson has been assigned) issued the following statement:

“Terremoto en Esmeraldas 7.8. Todos los misionero (a)s en la misión estamos bien. All missionaries in our our mission accounted for and doing well. Gracias al Senor por sus tiernas misericordias! We are grateful for the Lord’s tender mercies!”

Residents along the Ecuador coastline were most affected by the 7.8 earthquake, which struck Saturday at dusk local time, turning hundreds of thousands of lives upside down.

Jackson’s parents, Jeff and Temple Jackson, found out about the massive earthquake about 9:30 pm Saturday. Their family has been active contributors to the local community for 20 years. Paige, and her twin sister, McKenna, played on the Camas High School Girls Varsity Basketball team, and siblings Brynn and Jefferson “Bubba” currently attend CHS.

“We spent most of the night hoping she was OK,” said Temple. “We’re glad to know the missionaries are all accounted for.”

The death toll soared from under 100 on Saturday night to 238 on Sunday afternoon — and it’s expected to rise, according to CNN. At least 1,500 people were injured, said Ricardo Peñaherrera of Ecuador’s national emergency management office.

The cities of Manta and Porteviejo were the hardest hit, with buildings totally collapsing, and roads and overpasses destroyed. The earthquake hit Saturday night causing houses to collapse and knocking out power in Guayaquil, Ecuador’s most populous city, authorities said. People left their homes and wandered around, some sleeping in the streets.

Ecuador Residents Describe Earthquake

Zoraida Gallegos, a Duran, Ecuador resident, said “The earthquake hit right at 8:50 pm and the lights went out immediately. Electricity was out all night. It’s been very scary, but we put our faith in God.”

Gallegos provided most of the images in this article.

Local officials asked residents to not travel on Sunday, so emergency personnel could get help where it’s most needed.

Ricardo Blum, who lives in Babahoyo, Ecuador, said “there were several families who lost their home last night, and they are currently staying in the local church. I’m grateful my family is fine.”

He said there’s a lot of devastation, but that people are helping each other.

“We’re grateful that nothing really terrible happened in Duran,” said Carlos Pincay. “We did feel the quake and it lasted a long time. A few things fell down. It’s the first time I’ve experienced something like that. In other parts further north many have died, and there is much devastation. Today, nobody attended church, and we hope there won’t be any aftershocks.”

Angel Romo, who lives in the mountains, in a city called Ambato,  said “We felt the quake up here in the mountains, but we didn’t have the devastation they had on the coast.”

In a race to help residents, Ecuador deployed 10,000 soldiers and 4,600 police officers to the affected areas. The armed forces built mobile hospitals in Pedernales and Portoviejo and set up temporary shelters.

In addition, because of destroyed highways, first responders are having trouble transporting water and other much needed supplies to the hardest hit areas.

Pincay said local communities and church members are sustaining each other until additional help arrives in those areas.

Technology also played an interesting role in this tragedy. In order to not tie up phone lines, many Ecuador residents, with connections to United States citizens, have used the Facebook Safety Check App, which allows family and friends to connect during emergencies.

That’s how this reporter found out about the earthquake. My phone lit up with alerts about friends in Ecuador. Thank you, Facebook.

The Jackson family will provide updates on Paige as they learn more.