Chile’s Earthquake–the 8.8 experience

As the world is now fully aware, Chile suffered a massive 8.8-point earthquake at 3:34 AM on Saturday, February 27, 2010. Some 80% of the country felt the impact that left some sectors nearly decimated and others barely touched. Chile is no stranger to earthquakes. It holds the record for the world’s worst—9.5 points in Valdivia in May 1960. Chile—and Chileans—are prepared to meet nature’s wrath square on, and thanks to appropriate technology and a culture of preparedness (turn off the gas, turn on the water, open the door, stand in the doorway, get outside, get to high ground), the country has been able to withstand a fury that would have brought most other countries to their figurative knees.

Earthquake: A Personal View

Here’s a bit of my story as experienced in Concón, on Chile’s Pacific coast, just north of Viña del Mar (see the map below). It’s far less dramatic than many, but it’s also good for people to know that the entire country has not collapsed.

This was not the first time I’ve felt the world shake in the middle of the night. Nor was it the first time that my husband and I showed our different natures in the face of an emergency.

At 3:34 this morning, February 27, 2010, as the Earth let out a roar that began 35 km (22 mi) beneath the surface and began its strongest round of shake, rattle, and roll in 50 years, my very Chilean husband, having dealt with earthquakes and associated lore all his life, sprang from sound asleep to full alert in seconds and flew from the bed to the doorway, which is generally held to be the safest place to be in a quake.

Me? I’m the gringa who grew up relatively earthquake-free, and as such have no experienced-based fear of them. My response is to stay put until the shaking stops. So as he was shouting for me to run to the door, I was clutching the mattress, which jumped as if possessed, while calling for him to come back… Sometimes this works… but not this night.

See, the thing about earthquakes is that you never know when they will strike, how intense they will become, or how long they will last. And this one kept getting stronger and showed no signs of letting up. This was the big one… I joined him at the door.

Thankfully the moon was close to full and shed just enough light that we could see where we were going—it also allowed us to catch the TV just as it took a flying leap from its stand.

As I think back to those 3 eternal minutes, I try to make sense of detached and disorderly details. We were half-crouching, half-staggering like drunks on an all-night bender as we tried to keep our balance in the apartment doorway as the building randomly lurched back and forth and from side to side as if some giant hand had gone wild with a demonic joystick. In my mind’s eye I see our mouths moving, but have no idea what we said to each other. I don’t remember the sound. It must have been deafening—the earth roars when it moves and everything in the house rattles. Things fall from shelves, glasses fly from their cupboards and shatter across the room, doors open and slam shut, windows protest their frames, furniture throws tantrums and hurls itself to the floor… it must have been loud, but I don’t remember. My memory of the moment is as surreal as a psychedelic movie.

When things settled down, we pulled on some jeans and headed for the door. We needed to get out and down to the (dubiously) solid ground 8 floors below. I grabbed my camera bag and was almost out the door when I realized I should probably bring my purse as well! (thinking like a photographer in a crisis it seems).

My step-son called from the next town over (Reñaca) to let us know that he and his wife were okay. Then the phone went dead. I sent out a Tweet time-stamped 3:34: “TERREMOTO FUERTE in Concón.” I saw others had done the same and knew that Santiago, Casablanca, and Colchagua were also involved. I also knew that my friend Matt was missing England 😉

I tweeted again a couple minutes later asking about epicenter and injuries… that was the last communication we had for hours.

All of the neighbors were downstairs. All dazed. All glued to useless cell phones, trying desperately to contact loved ones. All jumping with every one of the many (though small) aftershocks. But not a tear. Not even the babies were crying.

It was cold, so we got in the car and turned on the radio and eventually learned that the epicenter was between Concepción–we have family in Concepción–and Maule. I wondered about friends in the wine industry. All those barrels. All those tanks of wine. All those old bodegas… there was no way to know.

We knew that the ocean had pulled back and people in the south had run for the hills to avoid a tsunami. It pulls back during a quake and can return with a vengeance. (see the photo slide show link at the end of this piece). We wondered what the Pacific had in store for us, just down the cliff.

Beach view. The red line marks the normal waterline.

At 5:30 we were finally able to get through to my in-laws in Santiago. They were fine and already back in bed. At 6:00 we also decided to take our chances and return, exhausted, to our apartment. The damage wasn’t so bad. Some broken glasses, things on the floor. No structural damage. Nothing of importance. We were okay.

Back to bed, only to be jolted—hard—once again at 7:30. Little chance of more sleep.

High water at outlet of Aconcagua River. Left circle marks what remains of the water park that was in full operation 12 hours earlier. Right circle marks spot where rental horses are usually stabled.

No lights (the municipality controls that). No gas (the building manager turned it off). No water (the pump is electric). No communication (cell phones were out again). No way to reach my family in the US, so we headed back to Santiago. Besides, it just didn’t feel right to stay at the beach, pretending to have a good time, while incommunicado with the world and knowing that others were suffering around the country.

The roads were relatively clear and amazingly free of structural damage. The major highway (Rt 68) had reopened—all the tunnels and bridges had been checked and cleared for safety. I’m not wild about tunnels (ever) so we took the Cuesta Zapata—the road that goes up over the mountain instead of through it. Numerous rock slides had left boulders scattered about the winding narrow road, making it a bit of an adventure.

Landslides along Cuesta Zapata (Casablanca) post earthquake

The new highway that normally allows us to skirt the downtown sector was closed due to damage, so we came straight through downtown. The streets were calm. The air was weird. We’re used to smog in Santiago, but this wasn’t it. There was an odd glow to it as the sun shone through the haze of dust that had been shaken and sent high into the atmosphere by the force of seismic fury.

We saw little damage along Alameda, Santiago’s main street. Some cracks here, some rubble there, but nothing very dramatic, until we reached the Divina Providencia Church. Divine Providence. How ironic the name. The entire cupola had been wrenched from its roost atop the church, as if to allow the altar to gape at the heavens.

Iglesia Divina Providencia minus cupola, post earthquake

Home at last. Neighbors had already checked our place, and we knew there was no major damage… heavy furniture had walked itself several inches out from the wall, some wine glasses had worked their way from their perch, a bookshelf had tumbled, odds and ends were scattered about, and not a single bottle of wine was lost from my cellar.

Deep breath. Find the broom. Remember to give thanks.

——

For More Info:

Here’s a little piece I wrote for the Guardian yesterday : Chile’s earthquake: view from Santiago

And a link to a a selection of truly unbelievable Chilean Earthquake Pictures.

Even more pictures from the Chilean newspaper La Tercera: Chilean Earthquake Slide Show.

Also see Liz Caskey’s Post about her experience of the Earthquake in Chile.

For much more information on earthquake activity, see the excellent US Geological Survey’s Earthquake site.

USGS Earthquake Map (http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/dyfi/events/us/2010tfan/us/index.html)