Great earthquake in Chile

A 8.8-magnitude quake struck Chile this morning, killing at least 78 people, collapsing buildings and causing tsunami warnings across Asia.

The earthquake occurred in the area about 325 km southwest of the capital Santiago, at a depth of 35 km at 3:30 am this morning (13h 34 Hanoi). The epicenter is located a few kilometers from Chile's second largest city - Conception. This city has about 200,000 inhabitants.

According to AP, in about two and a half hours after the seismic lasting 90 seconds, the US Geographic Survey measured 11 aftershocks, five of which were from 6 or more Richter levels. Meanwhile, Chilean President Michele Bachelet said a large wave hit the densely populated area of ​​the Robinson Crusoe Islands, 660km from the Chilean coast.

The car was overturned on the street after the earthquake.Photo: AP.

Tsunami alerts have been launched in 53 countries and territories including South America, Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, the Philippines, Russia and many islands in the Pacific.

President Bachelet said the total number of people killed was 78 and still increased, but the authorities did not know the number of people injured. ' We have just experienced a severe earthquake and many aftershocks,' Bachelet said at the emergency response center and called on the Chileans to calm down. 'The government still works. Everyone should stay calm. We are trying our best. '

She also asked people to avoid traveling, because traffic lights were all broken, to avoid further casualties.

In the capital, Santiago airport must be closed and this situation will continue within 24 hours. Eduardo del Canto airport director said the passenger lounge was badly damaged.

Chilean television filmed collapsed buildings, damaged cars and roads flooded with rock and soil. Dozens of people wandered on the street, hand carrying luggage. Elsewhere, a group of people were sitting around the fire for heating.

Marco Vidal, a witness, said he was on the 19th floor of Santiago's Crown Plaza hotel when the earthquake struck. "Everything suddenly fell. The lamp rushed to the floor. Everything was moving from south to north. I was scared ," he said.

Cynthia Locono, an American tourist, initially thought that a passing train would shake. "But then I thought, what to do with any ship here. And then the lights, the falling TV broke. It was horrifying ," she said. pay attention to each other '.

In Santiago, modern buildings are designed to withstand earthquakes but many heavily destroyed old houses, such as the Nuestra Senora de la Providencia church, are collapsed. Elsewhere, the two-story parking garage was flattened, causing 50 cars in it to be damaged, whistling loudly.

In the coastal city of Vina del Mar, earthquakes occur when guests are leaving the dance floor. "Terribly, everyone screamed. Someone rushed out, others were numb to do nothing ," said Julio Alvarez, a witness.

President Bachelet declared a disaster in three central regions. Relief workers are waiting for the morning to examine in detail the effects of earthquakes. However, she said the damage was obviously huge. She also said Chile has yet to ask for help from any country.

Bachelet said some hospitals had been evacuated after the earthquake, and contact information for the City of Conception could not be resumed.

The largest earthquake in Chile occurred on May 22, 1960. The seismic intensity of 9.5 Richter killed 1,655 people and left 2 million people homeless. The tsunami that it dragged killed people in Hawaii, the Philippines and Japan and caused damage in the US west coast.