Quito, Ecuador — The earthquake that shook Ecuador last Saturday has proved to be the most destructive in nearly seven decades and has caused the worst humanitarian catastrophe here in memory. Official figures record more than 577 dead, but according to the hundreds of volunteers in the disaster zone, there are many more fatalities not yet accounted for. Entire villages have been destroyed, and the photographs circulating on social media resemble scenes from the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.

The earthquake is historic not only for the magnitude of the destruction and human suffering, but also for giving rise to the most impressive mobilization of civil society in Ecuador I can remember. The country has become one huge relief center, and in almost every neighborhood, in towns large and small, there are collection points for donations of clothing, food and blankets.

So many people have joined the aid effort that in some places, they have been asked to stop sending volunteers. Social media has become a citizens’ channel for messaging about offers of help or calls for relief: everything from medicine and mattresses to drinking water and toys for children, and even powdered lime to cover the hastily buried corpses of loved ones.

What is striking about this huge humanitarian operation is that it has pushed the state into a secondary role. This may be normal in other countries, but in Ecuador this is an immensely significant development.