Shaken Families Share Scary Quake Story, Images

It was supposed to be a spring break full of swimming and soaking up the sun, but it became unforgettable for another reason.

“All of a sudden the ground was shaking, so I was crying and I ran to my mom, I felt so scared,” 8-year-old Ally Troche said.

A group of four Rancho Peñasquitos families were vacationing just one hour south of Mexicali when Sunday's powerful 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck.

“I actually thought we were going to die for a little bit, it was an intense first few minutes,” said 14-year-old Erik Hetzel.

Carl Friedemann, the owner of the home where the families were staying, was at a nearby cantina getting supplies when the ground began shaking.

"It was like the second coming," Friedemann said. "It was pandemonium."

The group's vacation home south of San Felipe is located in a rural farm area, about 40 feet from the Rio Hardy -- the same river they witnessed another home falling into. Large cracks in the earth appeared just steps from the front door of the home, and water began bubbling up in geysers.

One member of the group who didn't have four-wheel drive on their vehicle became stuck in mud so tenacious that the bumper ended up being ripped off the car in an attempt to free it.

Using a home video camera, 12-year-old Kylie Hetzel captured incredible images of the damage – huge cracks in the ground and the house up the street that slid into the river.

“We are kind of sad, but we are ok,” she said in the video.

Back home, the four families celebrated the Easter they missed on Tuesday night, but say the hardest hit victims should not be forgotten.

“In the big scheme of things, we are more fortunate than the other people and I think it's important for people to know it's not over yet, there's a lot of work to be done and a lot of people that still need help,” 15-year-old Abby Friedemann said.

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