In the opening we see a happy home the night before the earthquake. The family retire for the night, and are soon disturbed by the vibrations. The pictures on the walls fall down, followed by the walls themselves. The father and mother escape, but the daughter is engulfed in the ruins. A party of British sailors, headed by their captain, come to the rescue and save a great many lives under most thrilling circumstances. The captain falls in the ruins and is rescued with difficulty, after he has rescued the young lady we were introduced to in the first scene. They are both conveyed on stretchers to a waiting vessel, and both speedily recover. Whilst approaching convalescence they fall in love with each other, are betrothed, and the scenes end to the tune of wedding bells.
—Kinematograph Weekly - March 4, 1909