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Chile Earthquake Rescue Underway
Photograph by Daniel Garcia, AFP, Getty Images
A rescue worker looks through a hole in a destroyed building in Concepción on February 28, 2010, a day after a devastating earthquake in Chile .
At least 711 people in Chile—many of them in coastal towns hit by tsunamis—died due to the magnitude-8.8 earthquake, one of the biggest ever recorded. The death toll is expected to grow, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet told news organizations Sunday.
(Related: "Chile-Earthquake Tsunamis Smaller Than Expected—But Why?")
"This is an emergency without parallel in the history of Chile," Bachelet said, adding for the first time that international aid will be welcomed, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Updated March 1, 2010
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Hungry Earthquake Victims?
Photograph by Jose Luis Saavedra, Reuters
Residents try to force their way into a supermarket to buy food on February 28, 2010, after a massive earthquake the previous day destroyed much of Concepción (map of Chile).
Looters have taken to the streets in Chile's second largest city, just 70 miles (113 kilometers) from the quake's epicenter.
In response, President Michelle Bachelet has ordered grocery stores to give away basic supplies in order to help survivors and quell looting, ABC World News reported.
Updated March 1, 2010
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Police Clash With Earthquake Survivors
Photograph by Jose Luis Saavedra, Reuters
Chilean police attempt to keep order as Chileearthquake survivors try to enter a supermarket to buy food and essentials in Concepción (map) on February 28, 2010.
President Bachelet has established a dusk-to-dawn curfew in the heavily damaged city, though 150 people have been arrested for violating the order, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Updated March 1, 2010
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Water Scarce After Earthquake
Photograph by Jose Luis Saavedra, Reuters
Residents of Concepción, Chile, draw water from a public fountain on February 28, 2010. The city's water supply was shut off following the earthquake.
Many parts of the country remain without water or electricity, and dozens of strong aftershocks continue to shake the disaster zone, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Updated March 1, 2010
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Chile Earthquake 2010: From Rubble, Grief
Photograph by Victor Ruiz Caballero, Reuters
As the sun sets on February 27, 2010, the day that a massive earthquake struck off the shore of Chile, people console one another next to a destroyed building in Talca (map of Chile).
The magnitude 8.8 earthquake struck off the coast at 2:34 a.m., local time, and has killed at least 200 people in Chile. The earthquake also spawned massive tsunamis, which have struck Hawaii and are expected to strike New Zealand and even Alaska.
(See "Tsunami Warning for Hawaii After Huge Chile Earthquake.")
Updated March 1, 2010
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Chile Earthquake 2010: Apartments in Santiago
Photograph by Marco Fredes, Reuters
Nearly felled by the 2010 Chile earthquake, an apartment building's windows buckle in Santiago.
Scientists tracking Twitter have found that the earthquake was felt as far away as the Atlantic Coast of Argentina.
Updated March 1, 2010
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Chile Earthquake 2010: Damaged Buildings
Photograph by Felipe Gamboa, AFP, Getty Images
Two men walk past a building in Valparaiso that was badly damaged by the 2010 Chile earthquake.
In addition to destroying buildings and bridges, the offshore quake severed power and communications lines leading into the country.
Updated March 1, 2010
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Chile Earthquake 2010: Collapsed Bridge
Photograph by Victor Ruiz Caballero, Reuters
A collapsed bridge is seen in Talca, destroyed by the 2010 Chile earthquake.
The U.S. Geological Survey has reported that dozens of aftershocks have struck Chile, some as high as magnitude 6.9.
Updated March 1, 2010
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Chile Earthquake 2010: Destroyed Home
Photograph by Eliseo Fernandez, Reuters
Hours after the February 27, 2010, Chileearthquake struck, people stand outside a destroyed home in Valparaíso (map of Chile).
Updated March 1, 2010
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Chili Earthquake 2010: Survivors in Streets
Photograph by Victor Ruiz Caballero, Reuters
Survivors of the February 27, 2010, Chileearthquake gather in downtown Santiago (map of Chile).
The coastline of Chile is one of the most active tectonic zones in the world, with 13 temblors of magnitude 7.0 or greater since 1973, the U.S. Geological Survey reports on its earthquake-monitoring website.
Updated March 1, 2010
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Cars Flipped in 2010 Chile Earthquake
Photograph by David Lillo, AP
Along a stretch of highway near Santiago, destroyed vehicles and damaged bridges lie in the wake of the February 27, 2010, Chileearthquake.
The earthquake's center was just 70 miles (115 kilometers) away from Concepción, Chile's largest city (map of Chile).
In May 1960 the same region produced the largest earthquake ever to be measured with modern instruments. That temblor had a magnitude of 9.5 and produced a tsunami that killed 61 people in Hawaii, Japan, and the Philippines.(Related: "Deadly Tsunami Swarm Hit Haiti After Earthquake, Experts Say.")
Updated March 1, 2010
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Chile Earthquake 2010: Tsunami Strike Map
Map and projection courtesy NOAA/NWS/West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center
A U.S. government map shows estimated tsunami strike times from the earthquake that struck off the coast of Chile on February 27, 2010. Times shown in the map are hours since the magnitude 8.8 temblor.
The earthquake struck at 10:34 p.m. U.S. Pacific time. The map projects, for example, that the tsunami could strike Oregon, in the same time zone at around 1:30 p.m.
The greatest safety concerns are in Hawaii, but a region from California to Alaska has been put under a tsunami advisory (tsunami safety tips) as well.
Submit your tsunami or earthquake photos to National Geographic's Your Shot >>
Updated March 1, 2010
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