Los Santos earthquake: how it happened

In its third statement on the Mission Row crash, the San Andreas Air National Guard has finally said what the aircraft was: an H-27 Hydra VTOL fighter jet on what it calls “a routine training flight” that suffered an engine malfunction. It says the loud noise witnesses heard was that malfunction.

The Guard says there is “no evidence at this time that the aircraft was shot down”, that nobody died, and that the airmen on board ejected safely before the crash and are being “evaluated in accordance with standard post-incident procedures”. It also explains the tail marking Weazel News could not trace: “H” stands for Hydra, and “27” marks the 27th design in the series, an internal military identifier and not a civilian registration.

The statement raises more questions than it answers. Only hours ago, the Governor’s office told the public that “no aircraft was lost over Mission Row” and that the State “does not comment on aircraft that were not lost”. The Guard has now confirmed that an aircraft was lost, over Mission Row, on the night of the earthquake.

It also does not explain why a fighter jet was flying a training sortie over a city that was already under an earthquake warning, why residents reported gunfire before the crash, why no ejection seats or parachutes were seen by anyone we have spoken to, or why the Guard spent two statements refusing to confirm that a military operation had taken place over Los Santos at all.

Weazel News has asked the Governor’s office which account is correct. Its press office says replies to its statements “are not monitored”.

Weazel News has obtained the first body-worn camera footage recorded inside Los Santos in the hours after the earthquake. It is the first of several clips passed to our newsroom, and we are publishing it as part one.

The footage shows the city as the people sent into it saw it: the damage, the conditions on the ground, and the scale of what responders faced. It stands in stark contrast to this morning’s statement from the Governor’s office, which recognises only fourteen deaths and calls what happened a “seismic event of regional interest”.

Some viewers may find the footage distressing. Weazel News has verified that it was recorded inside the Evacuation Zone after the main shock. We will publish further footage as we verify it. If you have footage of your own, send it to the Weazel News tip line.

The Office of the Governor has issued its first statement since the earthquake, from a “temporary seat of government” at Fort Zancudo. All state disaster assistance is suspended until a review that will finish “no earlier than” the second quarter of next year.

The State recognises only fourteen deaths and says the rest are “pre-existing, lifestyle-related, or firearm-related”. Claims must be made in person in Pillbox Hill, inside the Evacuation Zone, where entry carries a $25,000 fine.

Captain Kellow’s motel payments have been referred to the Ethics Commission, motels have been told to check evacuees can pay, and a 22:00 curfew is now in force in Paleto Bay. Homes left for 72 hours are “presumed abandoned” and may be handed to Maze Bank, Merryweather and Dynasty 8.

The first photos from inside the evacuation zone are reaching Weazel News this morning, and they suggest the death toll is far higher than officials have so far said.

Images sent to our newsroom by residents and rescue volunteers show bodies in the streets of east Los Santos, in collapsed buildings and in vehicles caught on the roads when the main shock hit. Based on what we have seen so far, Weazel News understands at least 600 people are now feared dead, three times the figure officials gave on Friday night.

Weazel News is still verifying these images. We are checking where and when each one was taken, and we will not publish pictures of the dead. We have asked the Office of Emergency Management and the Governor’s office to confirm the new figure; neither has responded.

Rescue crews say many buildings in La Mesa, Murrieta Heights and Mirror Park have still not been searched, and warn the number is likely to rise as they reach them.

If you are looking for a missing relative, register at the Paleto Bay Evacuation Centre at the Paleto Bay Sheriff’s Office, where officials are keeping a list of those accounted for. Do not return to the city to search yourself: the evacuation order remains in force and many streets are still unsafe.

Gaia Energy says power and gas across Los Santos have been "somewhat restored to a stable condition", after engineers worked through the night at the Palmer-Taylor Power Station and along the city’s damaged supply lines.

The company says the plant, which tripped offline when the main shock hit, is running again and feeding the grid at reduced output. Power is back to most of the west side and Downtown, but supply in the east of the city, including La Mesa, Murrieta Heights and Mirror Park, remains patchy, and short outages are still possible while lines are repaired.

Gas has been restored street by street, only after crews isolated damaged mains and checked each area. Gaia says dozens of leaks have been capped since Friday evening, but warns some streets in east Los Santos will stay shut off until engineers can inspect buried pipes.

Gaia is asking anyone back in their home not to relight gas appliances until they have been checked, to leave immediately and call 911 if they smell gas, and to switch off major appliances before power returns to avoid overloading the grid.

The restored supply is aimed first at hospitals, emergency services and the repair effort. The mandatory evacuation order for Los Santos remains in force.

Reporting tonight from Paleto Bay.

Weazel News has managed to set up a temporary base in Paleto Bay, alongside thousands of residents who have made it out of Los Santos. Families are arriving by car, on foot and in the back of trucks, many with nothing but what they could carry. Volunteers at the Paleto Bay Sheriff's Office are handing out water and blankets, and Paleto Bay Medical Center is treating a steady stream of the injured.

The picture from the city is grim. Emergency officials now estimate that at least 200 people have died, and they warn that number is expected to rise as crews reach collapsed buildings. Large fires are burning across the east side of Los Santos, gas leaks have been reported on dozens of streets, and much of the city remains without power or running water.

If you are still in Los Santos, stay away from damaged buildings, do not use naked flames anywhere you can smell gas, and head north to Paleto Bay if it is safe to travel. Stay with Weazel News.

Phones across Los Santos have received an emergency text ordering a mandatory evacuation of the entire city for at least seven days.

Residents are told to leave now and go to the Paleto Bay Evacuation Centre at the Paleto Bay Sheriff’s Office, taking the Great Ocean Highway or the Senora Freeway north. Paleto Bay Medical Center is treating the injured.

A powerful earthquake has struck Los Santos. The shaking was felt across the county, and early reports describe buildings collapsing in La Mesa, Murrieta Heights and Mirror Park.

Power has gone out across large parts of the city and emergency services are responding to hundreds of calls. If you are indoors, stay there until the shaking stops: drop, cover and hold on. Expect strong aftershocks.

A military jet has been shot down over Mission Row.

Witnesses describe hearing gunfire and a loud bang before the aircraft came down and skidded to a stop beneath the freeway overpass. The images were sent to Weazel News moments after the crash: the fuselage is torn open along its side and smoke is still rising from the wreck.

There is no word yet on the pilot, or on who opened fire. Police and military units are sealing off the area and emergency services are on their way. The authorities have not commented.

Stay away from Mission Row. If you are nearby, get indoors and away from windows. Stay with Weazel News.

Armed police and military units are now on the streets of Los Santos.

Our reporters across the city are seeing officers and soldiers in full body armour and helmets taking up positions at major junctions, outside City Hall, the banks and the shopping districts of Downtown and Vinewood. Riot shields, armoured vehicles and crowd barriers are being unloaded on Strawberry Avenue and outside Mission Row. A senior officer at the scene told our crew they are "preparing for large-scale protest and looting" but would not say what has prompted the deployment.

Residents in the east of the city report military jets flying low and fast over Los Santos in the last half hour, the roar rattling windows as far as Mirror Park. The San Andreas Air National Guard has not said why aircraft are in the air over the city.

Weazel News is urging viewers to stay calm, avoid large crowds and keep away from police lines. Stay with Weazel News.

The memo, marked "contingency: restricted", outlines plans to put military units on city streets, set up checkpoints on every major route out of the city, and give the National Guard powers to stop and turn back civilian traffic. One passage warns that a mass departure could "overwhelm the highways and put rescue operations at risk". Residents fear that means they could be forced to stay in Los Santos while officials themselves leave.

Read our exclusive.

Over the past few hours our cameras have filmed unmarked vans and National Guard trucks leaving City Hall and heading north on the Great Ocean Highway. Two sources inside the Governor's office, who asked not to be named, told Weazel News that staff were ordered to pack essential records and report to Paleto Bay by tonight. One described the order as "precautionary, but urgent".

Read our exclusive.

This is an urgent update from the San Andreas Office of Emergency Management. In the last six hours the earthquake swarm beneath La Mesa and Murrieta Heights has accelerated sharply, with more than forty tremors recorded since midday and the ground along the fault moving faster than at any point this week.

The San Andreas Geological Survey's forecast models now show the highest risk of a major earthquake this evening, in a window between 7pm and 9pm, peaking at around 8pm. Earthquakes cannot be predicted with certainty, and a quake could come earlier, later, or not at all.

Treat tonight as the danger period. Stay out of tall and older buildings where you can, park away from overpasses, keep your phone charged, and know where you will take cover. If the shaking starts: drop, cover and hold on.