8.8 magnitude Earthquake strikes Chile

Here we go again….

Video:

This is RAW Video from the Associated Press:

An American in Chili interview:

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President Michele Bachelet declared a state of catastrophe in central Chile after a massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck early Saturday.

The most powerful quake to hit the country in a half century cut electricity, water and phone lines to many areas, meaning there was no word of death or damage from many outlying areas.

There have been conflicting reports on the death toll, with some placing the count as high as 122, a number Chilean officials expect to rise.

Early Saturday, Bachelet appealed from an emergency response center for Chileans to remain calm.

“Despite this, the system is functioning. People should remain calm. We’re doing everything we can with all the forces we have. Any information we will share immediately,” Bachelet said.

President-elect Sebastian Pinera said the earthquake caused serious damage to the country’s infrastructure. The historic center, filled with buildings of adobe mud and straw, largely collapsed, though most of those were businesses that were not inhabited during the 3:34 a.m. quake. Neighbors pulled at least five people from the rubble while emergency workers, themselves disoriented, asked for information from reporters.

In the Chilean capital of Santiago, 200 miles northeast of the epicenter, a car dangled from a collapsed overpass, the national Fine Arts Museum was badly damaged and an apartment building’s two-story parking lot pancaked, smashing about 50 cars whose alarms rang incessantly.

Santiago’s airport will remain closed for at least 24 hours, airport director Eduardo del Canto said. The passenger terminal suffered major damage, he told Chilean television in a telephone interview. TV images show smashed windows, partially collapsed ceilings and pedestrian walkways destroyed.

The city’s subway was shut as well and hundreds of buses were trapped at a terminal by a damaged bridge, Transportation and Telecommunications Minister told Chilean television. He urged Chileans to make phone calls or travel only when absolutely necessary.

A tsunami set off by the quake threatened every nation around the Pacific Ocean — roughly a quarter of the globe. Warnings were issued over a wide area, including South America, Hawaii, Australia and New Zealand, Japan, the Philippines, Russia and many Pacific islands.

It appears that Hawaii is on alert, video story story via MSNBC:

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The Story via MSNBC:

EWA BEACH, Hawaii – A tsunami threatened the Pacific Rim on Saturday, with an 8.8-magnitude earthquake off Chile sending potentially deadly waves across the ocean at the speed of a jetliner.

Sirens blared in Hawaii to alert residents to the impending waves, with authorities asking people living near the water to evacuate. On several South Pacific islands hit by a tsunami last fall, police began evacuations of the coast.

The first waves in Hawaii are expected to hit shortly after 11 a.m. Saturday (4 p.m. EST; 2100 GMT) and measure roughly 8 feet (2.5 meters) at Hilo. Most Pacific Rim nations however did not order evacuations, but advised people in low-lying areas to be on the lookout.

Thoughts and prayers for all of those in the affected areas. I am monitoring the Amateur Radio Frequencies and looking out for Emergency nets and so forth.

More updates as I get them.

A full round up is at Memeorandum

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