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Aftershocks rattle Chile as aid trickles in
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet toured the battered seaport of Talcahuano on Thursday, five days after a tsunami caused by an 8.8-magnitude earthquake roared through parts of the city.
Wearing a blue Windbreaker and surrounded by military, local dignitaries and TV cameras, Bachelet walked for blocks before stopping to make a lengthy statement.
"The reality is that I came here today to make sure that aid is arriving ... and we are responding to the needs of the people," Bachelet said.
Talcahuano, the nearby city of Concepcion and other parts of central and southern Chile were the hardest-hit areas and the scene of days of looting and lawlessness. Many residents, including Concepcion's mayor, complained that federal aid was slow in arriving.
Bachelet dispatched more than 13,000 soldiers and other military personnel to restore order in the area. Food and water also started to arrive late Tuesday, and officials said they distributed 3,500 aid packages Wednesday.
The president's visit came hours after new tremors rocked parts of Chile early Thursday.
A 4.9-magnitude aftershock struck near the already devastated Maule region about 1:30 a.m. Thursday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
A 6.1-magnitude aftershock hit near Valparaiso earlier, raising fears that damaged buildings could topple.
More than 120 aftershocks of 5.0 magnitude or greater have hit Chile since Saturday's 8.8-magnitude earthquake, said geophysicist Don Blakeman of U.S. Geological Survey.
The disaster's death toll had risen to 802 by Wednesday, with nearly 600 of those in Maule, the National Emergency Office said. Nineteen people were missing, said Patricio Rosende, Chile's assistant interior secretary.
Despite fears from the aftershocks, crews are focused on providing aid to the most vulnerable.
Aid was flowing into some hard-hit areas Wednesday, but some residents said they still had not received food or water. Security forces also fanned out to stop looters.
See scenes of devastation
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet urged residents Wednesday to remain calm despite the shortages and lawlessness in Concepcion, Talcahuano and other areas of central and southern Chile. For the second consecutive day, she warned that looting will not be tolerated.
"Nobody can argue that taking a refrigerator is an act of survival," Bachelet told reporters. "That is simply vandalism and delinquency."
About 13,000 soldiers had been sent to Concepcion and other cities to maintain order, she said.
An overnight curfew remained in effect for the third day Wednesday in Concepcion, the scene of the worst looting. Authorities said they would take whatever steps were needed to keep order, and 35 people were arrested for curfew violations.
A military presence and citizen patrols appeared to maintain order in the nation's second-largest city, but many stores showed signs of looting.
Food and water were being distributed in Concepcion. Mayor Jacqueline Van Rysselberghe said 30 trucks of aid were a good start but not nearly enough.
Concepcion is less than 10 miles inland from Talcahuano, but the two towns suffered far different fates. In Concepcion, fatalities and injuries resulted largely from buildings that had collapsed.
In coastal Talcahuano, a tsunami roared into town about an hour after the quake. When the waters receded, large boats were left stranded inland.
Much of the port city looked as if a bomb had exploded there, with buildings reduced to rubble.
In the central city of Talca, an ancient municipality, the earthquake wiped out many older adobe structures, crushing hundreds of residents. Thursday's early aftershock struck about 40 miles north of Talca.
It was unclear what the new quake did to the already battered region.
In the seaside town of Constitucion, survivors tried to hold on to the little that remained. Saturday's earthquake flattened rows of homes, leaving a path of destruction that led to the sea.
Many had left, but Sofia Monsalve Gutierrez and Emilio Gutierrez stayed near the concrete slab that used to be their home. On Wednesday, they were searching for their 4-year-old son.
They had not seen him since he ran from their home and jumped into a boat during the massive earthquake.
"If you know my son, please keep pictures of him. I don't have any pictures left of him. It's very important to me," the mother said.
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