About the earthquake ...

Here´s some news about the earthquake that disturbed my slumber on Saturday. It was also felt in Santiago, but also only mildly.

An earthquake measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale struck the Aysen region, located 35 mi/55 km northwest of Coyhaique in southern Chile, on 21 April 2007. Three people were confirmed dead and seven others remain missing. Although there were no initial reports of major damage, numerous landslides sent large rocks into a narrow fjord near the coastal regions, causing 25 ft/7.6 m waves that swept away approximately 10 people. Although there was no tsunami, the landslides caused a major increase in the water level.

On 22 April, President Michelle Bachelet visited the affected region, where she was met by protesting residents who complained that the government has been too slow in recent months to offer assistance following increased seismic activity. Scientists suspect that the recent barrage of seismic activity is related to the formation of a new undersea volcano.

There was some spectacular footage on the evening news here. The editors are a lot more lenient than the ones in the States who are ham-strung by a public that will pay $10 a pop to watch a gratuitously gory film, but then flips its lid when anything "too disturbing" shows up on the news during dinner time.