Heroic rescue dog saves dozens of lives in Mexican earthquake

A rescue dog has saved dozens of lives while searching through collapsed buildings in Mexico following the catastrophic earthquake that shook the nation this week.

Frida, a Labrador attached to the Mexican Navy’s Canine Unit, has been hard at work looking for survivors in the rubble of Mexico City after a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck earlier this week and claimed the lives of at least 273 people.

The six-year-old’s efforts in the capital come just two weeks after she found 12 stricken people in Oaxaca when a more powerful quake struck.

She now has 52 saves notched on her career collar after working on rescue missions in natural disasters in Mexico and abroad.

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The rescue dog is being hailed a hero on social media.

She has even been honoured for her tireless efforts by the nation’s president, Enrique Pena Nieto, who praised the pup on Twitter.

“This is Frida," he wrote. "She belongs to SEMAR and has helped save 52 lives in various natural disasters at national and international levels."

Frida has become a symbol of hope in the devastated nation that suffered another shock when a missing schoolgirl whose fate captured the nation "did not exist".

The revelation from the Navy led to an outpouring of anger over the mix-up.

The death toll was at least 273, officials said. Mexico City Mayor Miguel Angel Mancera said 50 people were still missing.

Working without pause since Tuesday afternoon's quake, first responders and volunteers have saved 60 survivors from central Mexico City to poor neighbourhoods far to the south.

Late on Wednesday night, an eight-year-old girl was rescued from a collapsed building in the Tlalpan neighborhood, nearly 36 hours after the quake, local officials said.