Chile Quake Is One of the Biggest in a Century

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Source : Sulekha.com

People, amidst tear gas, run away from police oficcers during looting in Concepcion, Chile, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010. (AP Photo/Aliosha Marquez)

People force the door of a supermarket during looting in Concepcion, Chile, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010.

People carry goods during looting in Concepcion, Chile, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010

A man carries goods during looting in a supermarket in Concepcion, Chile, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010.

People carry goods during looting in a supermarket in Concepcion, Chile, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010.

Rescue workers recover the body of an earthquake victim from a collapsed building in Concepcion, Chile, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010. (AP Photo/ Natacha Pisarenko)

Rescue workers looks for earthquake victim in a collapsed building in Concepcion, Chile, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010.

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Source :
Sulekha.com
BBC.com

Bruno Sandoval, right, and Aileen Marquez look at a damaged vehicle after an earthquake in Pelluhue, some 322 kms, about 200 miles, southwest of Santiago, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010.

People walk in a area, damaged by an earthquake, in Pelluhue, some 322 kms, about 200 miles, southwest of Santiago, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010. (AP Photo/Roberto Candia)

President Michelle Bachelet flew by helicopter over some of the worst hit areas and said that up to two million people could be affected.

 

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Residents sit in a main square downtown Santiago after the quake.

A resident of Talca surveys a destroyed car covered with rubble. The worst affected areas appear to be closest to the epicenter, southwest of Santiago near Concepcion, Valdivia and Temuco

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1968519_2081619,00.html#ixzz0gv4dS5a3

 

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Reuters Pictures

The bodies of residents lie on the floor of the local fire station after becoming victims of the waves generated by a major earthquake, near the epicenter in Cuanripe February 28, 2010. Chilean rescuers used shovels and sledgehammers Sunday to find survivors of a huge earthquake in Chile that unleashed a Pacific tsunami and triggered looting by desperate and hungry residents.

A woman mourns the death of a loved one lying next to another victim of the waves generated by a major earthquake, near the epicenter in Cuanripe February 28, 2010.

Chileans charge their mobile phones from one of the few working electricity points in their neighborhood after a major earthquake damaged the city's infrastructure in Santiago February 28, 2010.

Residents cross a highway destroyed by a major earthquake, near the epicenter in Curanipe February 28, 2010.

Residents sleep in a public garden, due to the fear of aftershocks, after a major earthquake in Santiago February 28, 2010.

People peer into a vehicle which was tipped over by waves generated by a major earthquake, near the epicenter in Pelluhue February 28, 2010.

 

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Reuters Pictures

Debris is washed up by waves generated by a major earthquake near the epicenter in Dichato February 28, 2010.

A resident inspects debris left by waves generated by a major earthquake near the epicenter in Dichato February 28, 2010.

Debris is washed up by waves generated by a major earthquake near the epicenter in Dichato February 28, 2010.

A boy walks past destruction caused by waves generated by a major earthquake, near the epicenter in Pelluhue February 28, 2010.

A boy walks past the destruction caused by waves generated by a major earthquake, near the epicenter in Pelluhue February 28, 2010.

Residents inspect the destruction caused by waves generated by a major earthquake, near the epicenter in Curanipe February 28, 2010.

 

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Reuters Pictures

Chile's President Michelle Bachelet (2nd R) speaks to residents as she visits collapsed houses after an earthquake in Concepcion, some 100 km (62 miles) south of the epicenter February 27, 2010.

Chile's President Michelle Bachelet (L) shakes hands with a resident at an earthquake-destroyed area in Concepcion, some 100 km (62 miles) south of the epicenter February 27, 2010.

 

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Even fire stations are looted

Tue, Mar 02, 2010
AFP
CONCEPCION, Chile, March 1, 2010 (AFP) - Looters pillaged shops and torched two stores in Chile's second city Monday as quake survivors ramped up a desperate search for food, angered by security forces trying to bar their way.
"It's full, they have water, food, diapers, but the police won't let us go inside," complained one man standing next to the Concepcion supermarket after a curfew was imposed overnight in a bid to stop theft and violence.
Police and troops stood guard trying to hold back the looters, fanning anger among the crowd.

Police detain people on suspicion of looting in Concepcion, Chile, Monday, March 1, 2010.


"It would be fine if they distributed things, or at least sold them to us," grumbled Carmen Norin, 42.
Tensions rose as police fired tear gas to try to disperse an angry crowd that descended on the Bigger supermarket and set fire to the building after they were prevented from entering.
The fire sent a cloud of black smoke billowing out over the ruins of Concepcion, one of the cities worst hit by Saturday's 8.8-magnitude quake which has killed more than 700 people.
The building's roof collapsed in the fire, injuring a volunteer firefighter in the coastal city of about 600,000 residents, some 500 kilometers (311 miles) south of Santiago. One person who emerged screaming, covered in flames, was rescued by the firefighters.
It was the second store to be set ablaze on Monday. Elsewhere, looters climbed atop buses to loot abandoned and destroyed houses.
"Here, people are even looting fire stations," sighed Conception fire department chief Jaime Jara.
"We understand that people need to eat, but looting hospitals and clinics... How can we serve our people?" he said.
One person was shot and killed overnight in circumstances that remained unclear and at least 160 were arrested for violating the first curfew imposed in Chile since the end of Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship in 1990.
Hundreds of troops were deployed to Concepcion alongside police as part of President Michelle Bachelet's deployment of 7,000 soldiers to the areas worst hit by the deadly tremor.
Desperate residents, hunger tugging at their stomachs and their throats aching with thirst, raked through the ruins of supermarkets, grabbing everything from food products to televisions.
"If they have basic foods, milk, flour, water, diapers for babies, the order is to not arrest them," said Carlos Huerino, a police inspector. "But if they have a television, they'll arrest them."
Bachelet declared a state of emergency Sunday in Maule and Biobio regions, and Concepcion was placed under curfew from 9:00 pm (0000 GMT) to 6:00 am (0900 GMT).

Chilean soldiers patrol the streets to stop looting and keep the order after a major earthquake in Concepcion March 1, 2010.


"Where they looted yesterday, there is nothing left. They took everything in the supermarkets and the pharmacies," said a 55-year-old cashier who declined to give her name.
"The mayor has set up water distribution point and Radio Biobio is giving out medicine and transmitting information, but we need everything - bread, milk."
At a dairy market, a man threw containers of milk from a balcony to a crowd of people below while others made off with sacks of flour.
But the crowd quickly scattered as a truck mounted with a water canon pulled up along with an armored car and two buses carrying some 30 policemen dressed in riot gear and brandishing truncheons.
The first troops to arrive were generally welcomed by local residents desperate for a return to normalcy.
"It's good that they've come because there was a lot of disorder," said Norin, adding some prisoners had reportedly escaped from the Manzano prison.

Soldiers stand guard as firemen fight a fire at a supermarket in Concepcion, Chile.

A resident observes the San Francisco de Curico church after it was damaged in a major earthquake in Curico, March 1, 2010.

The ferris wheel from the Florida Circus sits among debris in Iloca, Chile, Monday, March 1, 2010.

Rescuers carry a puppy founded alive in a destroyed house in Constitucion, Chile, Monday, March 1 , 2010

 

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People look at an empty coffin in Constitucion, Chile, Monday, March 1 , 2010.
2. Forensic policemen place the body of an earthquake victim inside a coffin at an improvised morgue in the coastal town of Constitucion, Chile, 164 miles (264 km) southwest of Santiago, Monday, March 1, 2010.

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1. Soldiers prepare to head south towards the affected areas from Santiago, Monday, March 1, 2010
2. Police watch over a Coca Cola bottling plant after it was broken into by looters following a major earthquake in Concepcion, March 1, 2010.

A car is seen crushed by a container taken ashore by a tsunami caused by a massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake along a downtown street in Talcahuano, Chile on Monday. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Monday she is bringing satellite telephones to quake-stricken Chile as the government in Santiago appealed for the first time for international aid.
(AFP/Daniel Garcia)

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1.A man rides his bike past a damaged bridge in Santiago, Monday, March 1, 2010. 2.Two workers walk by a damaged entrance to the International Airport in Santiago, Monday, March 1, 2010
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1. Residents collect water from an urban lake, as the potable water system remains broken, after a major earthquake in Concepcion March 1, 2010.
2. Residents collect water from a drainage ditch....

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1. People wait to catch goods thrown from a supermarket window during sporadic looting in Concepcion, Chile, Monday, March 1, 2010. Security forces said they arrested dozens of people for violating an anti-looting curfew Monday after an 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck central Chile early Saturday.
(AP Photo/ Natacha Pisarenko)
2. Residents reach out to catch merchandize thrown from a market being looted in Concepcion, Chile, Monday, March 1, 2010.

A woman and her daughter cry as they search for missing relatives after a major earthquake in Constitucion March 1, 2010.


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1. A woman carries a mattress in Dichato, Chile, Monday, March 1, 2010.
2. Debris washed up by the waves generated by a major earthquake are seen next to a crate of fresh fish for sale in the surfing community of Pichilemu March 1, 2010.

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1. Bodies of earthquake victims are lined up at an improvised morgue in a gymnasium in the coastal town of Constitucion, Chile, 164 miles (264 km) south west of Santiago, Monday, March 1, 2010,
2. Forensic policemencarry the body of an earthquake victim ...

 

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AP Photo

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1. A resident looks at a destroyed church in Constitucion, Chile, Monday, March 1, 2010.
2. A damaged image sits among debris in Iloca, Chile, Monday, March 1, 2010.

Reuters Pictures

A statue of Saint Therese of Lisieux sits amid the destruction left by a major earthquake in La Pezca March 1, 2010.

Pieces of a doll lie among debris left by a major earthquake in Constitucion March 1, 2010.

A woman and her daughter cry as they search for missing relatives after a major earthquake in Constitucion March 1, 2010.

Looters walk across a field with merchandise they stole from a market in Santiago February 28, 2010.

A view of a walkway at Santiago's international airport after an earthquake, in Pelluhue February 28, 2010.

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AP Photo
Tsunami alert after Chile earthquake

Hawaii Department of Emergency Management officials use a bullhorn to alert homeless campers of the tsunami on Maile Beach, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010 in Waianae, Hawaii. Hawaii is under a tsunami warning after a 8.8 earthquake rattled Chile.

Hawaii Department of Emergency Management officers warn homeless campers of the tsunami warning on Maile Beach, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010, in Waianae, Hawaii.

Hawaii Department of Emergency Management officer Robert Uyeda, left, warns homeless campers on Maile Beach of the approaching tsunami, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010 in Waianae, Hawaii.

A homeless woman who did not want to be identified moves her belongings away from her campsite on Maile Beach, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010 in Waianae, Hawaii.

Aaron Okura, an employee of a hotel in the Waikiki area of Honolulu, helps move several lounge chairs from the swimming-pool area of the hotel Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010.

Kay Kunkleman, left, of Lima, Ohio, and Becky Jacobs, right, of Wapakoneta, Ohio, look over some pictures they took of themselves on a deserted Waikiki Beach in Honolulu on Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010. A tsunami threatened the Pacific Rim on Saturday, with an earthquake off Chile sending potentially deadly waves across the ocean. Sirens blared in Hawaii to alert residents to the impending waves, with authorities asking people living near the water to evacuate.

Heraldo Akira fuels his van Saturday morning, Feb. 27, 2010, in Honolulu, as drivers wait in line on a road leading to the gas station.​

 

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1st March, 2010
Japan says sorry over tsunami alert.
Weather experts apologised for ‘crying wolf’ after urging 1.5million people to flee a giant tsunami only to find waves were smaller than expected.
Japanese forecasters defended a decision to warn that waves of 3m (9ft 10in) or more could strike Japan’s Pacific coast after a quake hit Chile, but admitted it could make people less fearless about further alerts. ‘In the end, (the warning) was a bit excessive. I would like to apologise for the fact that the warning lasted so long,’ Japan meteorological agency official Yasuo Sekita said after lifting all warnings.
The warning on Sunday was the first for a major tsunami in 17 years and only the fourth since 1952. Meanwhile, Chile defence minister Francisco Vidal has admitted the country’s navy made a mistake by not immediately activating a tsunami warning after the 8.8 magnitude quake, a move that could have helped coastal residents flee to higher ground sooner. ‘The navy committed an error,’ he told a news conference.

AP Photo

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1. Seawater moves upward (from bottom to top) in the mouth of the Kamo River that flows into the Pacific Ocean at Kamogawa in Chiba prefecture, near Tokyo, on Sunday Feb. 28, 2010.
2. Seawater makes its way along the street towards the city center in Kesennuma, northern Japan on Sunday Feb. 28, 2010. Japan, fearing the tsunami could gain force as it moved closer, put all of its eastern coastline on tsunami alert Sunday and ordered hundreds of thousands of residents in low-lying areas to seek higher ground as waves generated by the Chilean earthquake raced across the Pacific at hundreds of miles (kilometers) per hour.

Seawater moves upward (from left to right) in the mouth of the Kamo River that flows into the Pacific Ocean at Kamogawa in Chiba prefecture, near Tokyo, on Sunday Feb. 28, 2010.

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1. A man makes his way along a street flooded with seawater in Kesennuma, northern Japan on Sunday Feb. 28, 2010.
2. A vehicle makes its way through a street flooded with seawater in Kesennuma, northern Japan on Sunday Feb. 28, 2010.

Workers try to retrieve plastic containers at a fish market flooded with seawater in Kesennuma, northern Japan on Sunday Feb. 28, 2010.​

 

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Los Angeles Times photographer Michael Robinson Chavez

March 1, 2010 - Residents in the coastal city of Constitucion assess the damage. The city was hit hard by both the magnitude 8.8 earthquake and the ensuing tsunami. Many citizens complained of a lack of government assistance and search and rescue crews..

March 1, 2010 - Buildings in Constitucion's older downtown suffered major damage; a store near the Plaza de Armas was little more than a pile of rubble. Little or no help has reached Constitucion and several other coastal towns.

March 1, 2010 - Residents in Constitucion pass a sign pointing to an evacuation route in the event of a tsunami. After the earthquake hit people had approximately 20 minutes to make for higher ground, which many did. Some credited their knowledge of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that began off the coast of Sumatra in making a quick escape.

March 1, 2010 - A woman is seen in quake-ravaged Constitucion. President Michelle Bachelet imposed emergency decrees, including putting the army in charge of hard-hit areas, measures not taken in more than 20 years.

 

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Los Angeles Times photographer Michael Robinson Chavez

March 1, 2010 - In Constitucion, the massive tsunami washed boats ashore, including into the main bus station which stands a few blocks inland from the river and about a mile from the ocean.

March 1, 2010 - In Constitucion, people take goods from a supermarket near the center of the city. Looting has become a major problem in several Chilean cities.

March 1, 2010 - A woman and her daughter weep as they watch a supermarket in Constitucion burn after it was looted. "We need food! We need water!" said a beleaguered Cesar Arrellano, a municipal comptroller who received unrelenting reports of damage, death and the desperate need for help.

March 1, 2010 - Victor Lucero, right, stands outside his daughter's home in Constitucion. She, along with her husband and two children perished in the earthquake; Lucero is waiting for search and rescue teams to bring the bodies out.

 

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March 1, 2010 - A man moves a mattress in the city of Constitucion. People are out salvaging and scavenging whatever possessions they can find. Along the waterfront the destruction was near total in the wake of the tsunami that came up the River Maule.

March 1, 2010 - People carry out the body of Graciela Aguilar from the makeshift morgue at the gymnasium in Constitucion. She died with a rosary in her hand, said her daughter, Maria Graciela Ceballos.

March 1, 2010 - In Constitucion, a woman looks at the list of casualties posted outside the gymnasium that is being used as a makeshift morgue.

 

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March 1, 2010 - Residents assembled at high school gymnasium to look among the bodies for missing loved ones.

March 1, 2010 - Maria Graciela Ceballos is consoled after identifying her mother at the makeshift morgue in Constitucion.

March 1, 2010 - People outside a store in Constitucion warn looters to leave after a fire breaks out. In Concepcion, looters were reported to be attacking firefighters and others trying to distribute aid.

 

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March 1, 2010 - A soldier confronts a woman who was trying to cut a line outside a pharmacy where people were lined up in hopes of filling their prescriptions. It was one of the few businesses still operating.

March 1, 2010 - A Chilean flag is all that stands in an area of Constitucion ravaged by the tsunami.

 

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View of rubble after a tsunami in San Antonio, Valparaiso, Chile.

Boats hurled aground by the tsunami in downtown Talcahuano, Chile, March 1, 2010.

A fishing boat hurled aground by the tsunami in Talcahuano, Chile.

An open casket amid the devastation caused by the earthquake and the tsunami in downtown Talcahuano, Chile.

 

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Devastation caused by the earthquake and the tsunami in downtown Talcahuano, Chile.

A looter attends to another who was hit by a car while stealing merchandise from a market, on a roadside in Santiago February 28, 2010.

A resident retrieves some belongings from a building destroyed by a major earthquake in Talca, Chile.

 

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The owner of a foodstall tries to recover some of her belongings after the building was destroyed by waves generated by a major earthquake, near the epicenter in Curanipe. Photo Credit: IVAN ALVARADO/REUTERS

A boat hurled aground by the tsunami in Talcahuano, Chile Photo Credit: AFP/Getty Images

Residents recover items from the debris left by waves generated by a major earthquake, near the epicenter in Pelluhue. Photo Credit:
IVAN ALVARADO/REUTERS