- At Maule province, bridges suffered structural damage and governmental authorities were unable to reach the quake’s most devasted areas to determine the actual scope of the tragedy.
- Tsunami waves struck several coastal areas of Bio Bio and Maule. Hundreds of people living in the coast fled to the nearby hills. Unfortunately, they completely lost their homes and belongings.
- Maule and Bio Bio have no basic services such as electricity, portable water, telephone network and Internet.
- Chile’s main highway suffered severe damage in several parts.
- Hospitals from the big cities of Parral and Talca suffered important structural damage.
- Street riots and supermarket-looting are evident given the desperation of the people to get some food and safe drinking water.
- Some fires have started, such as in the School of Chemistry at the University of Concepción.
- Damaged roads and poor airplane access have greatly limited the support of the central government and NGOs such as World Vision. These have intensified social turmoil exacerbated by people´s post traumatic stress due to the constant daily aftershocks.
- Many families do not want to go back to their homes and prefer to stay in streets and public parks.
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With a measure of 8.8 on the Richter scale, the 26th February earthquake that shook Chile is the strongest earthquake in the country in the last fifty years. It is also the fifth largest quake in this century.
The number of dead people is now 700 and 2 million citizens have been displaced. Thousands in Chile were woken up at dawn when tremors were felt at 3.34 a.m.
It was an extreme experience,” said World Vision Chile’s National Director, Tatiana Benavides. “I was with my mother in the 8th floor and the noise was terrible and everything was falling around us,” she recalled.
World Vision assessing damages and preparing to respond
World Vision is preparing to respond to the massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Chile, working with its regional offices to transport emergency relief supplies and getting ready to send more staff to support the relief response.
The Christian relief and development organisation's first relief flight, in coordination with the Bolivian air force, has been planned to depart for Chile with relief supplies like tarps, blankets, plastic sheeting, and collapsible water containers for survivors.
Airport closures in Chile are forcing delays in the plane's departure.
World Vision has worked in Chile for 30 years and has more than 100 staff in the country, many living and working in areas close to the quake epicenter.
"This quake will not be like the one in Haiti,"said Steve Matthews of World Vision's global rapid response team.
"Haiti was concentrated and that led to the challenge of tons of aid and hundreds of aid workers being sent into a small zone. This quake off the Chilean coast has potential to reach remote areas and thus it will be extremely difficult to assess the number of deaths and amount of damage, but we can expect that children and families will have taken the brunt of it. World Vision has the experience to know what survivors will need in the opening moments. Blankets, tarps, plastic sheeting and clean water will be the priorities," Matthews continued.
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Thousands of children and families are devastated by the earthquake in Chile. Your contribution will help our staff members rush emergency assistance to those in greatest need following the disaster.
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