This Saturday, Chile experienced a 6.4 magnitude earthquake. (Quick clarification for Spanish-learners: there are two words for earthquake in Spanish, temblor and terremoto. In Chile, temblor is used for earthquakes of magnitudes smaller than 7.0. A terremoto is an earthquake that registers at or over 7.0 magnitude.)
We certainly felt it. Matt and I were at home when it happened. It poured rain that Saturday, so we were staying in, making curry in the kitchen when it happened. I can't remember which I noticed first, the rumbling sound or the actual shaking. You could hear things rattling, and we even heard a framed photo fall from the other room. Luckily, our power didn't go out, no big furniture toppled, nor did our building sustain any damage. (Our building is a sturdy one!)
It lasted about forty seconds. Matt and I were fine. I think it may have even given me an adrenaline rush! That's not to say it wasn't scary, because for many people, it was. For people who live in less sturdy structures, for people not at home when they happen, for people on the coast, and for homeless people, I'm sure earthquakes are very frightening.
Do you know what you're supposed to do in an earthquake?
If you can, you should find a door frame and support yourself in it. If you can't get to a doorframe, take a look at the structure you're in. Find someplace to duck and cover so that if things shake and fall, they won't fall on you. We practiced that method at school.
In Chile, these signs can be found in every commercial building, including metro stations, shopping malls, and restaurants.
They show evacuation routes in case of an earthquake.
They're always green and they always show directions. It's not just an exit sign; it's a carefully planned evacuation route to take in case of earthquakes.
On Monday morning, during my first class, two (adult) students recounted scarier encounters with the earthquake.
One man had visited Viña del Mar over the weekend. Viña del Mar is on the coast, which should give you a clue as to what he had to do with the earthquake hit. When an earthquake hits a coast, there is a significant and justifiable fear that a tsunami will be created. My student was at a restaurant with his friends at the time the earthquake began. After the shaking stopped, they had to run. Bolt, in fact. They ran uphill, following signs that look like this:
This type of sign alerts people to the danger of a tsunami-induced earthquake, and it tells people to seek higher ground. Leave whatever it is that you're doing, don't wait, and run (uphill). Get to the highest ground you possibly can in case a tsunami comes. Once it's determined that a tsunami isn't coming, people are alerted that they can safely descend. Luckily, there wasn't a threat of tsunami this time, but there was one this past March in Iquique.
Another student was in a grocery store here in Santiago with his daughters when it happened. His story was equally as scary. He said when the shaking started, people started panicking and sprinting to the exits. The sliding doors, though, closed and locked. The store guard (all stores here have guards) tried to unlock it, but struggled in the throngs of people.
He said that people were crying and screaming, and generally panicking. Food items started to shake and fall off the shelves. He grabbed both of his daughters tightly, and told them to stay calm as he examined the building's structure. He noticed a part of an air conditioning unit was suspended in the ceiling above him, so he calmly moved himself and his daughters away from that spot, into a clear area. The shaking eventually subsided, and order was restored.
Both of their stories were quite scary.
I also understand that there was a 6.1 magnitude in California around the same time. While Chile sustained little damage, California was not as lucky. 200 people were treated for injuries, and there was significant damage to property.
My thoughts go to those who were affected by that California quake. I hope they heal and recover quickly.
California sits on a fault line, so it, like Chile, is prone to earthquakes. Hopefully neither California nor Chile will experience any big quakes anytime soon! They say it's better for the earth to let out little rumbles over time, so hopefully these quakes are letting the earth breathe a little.
Update: Chile is expected to have another earthquake in the next 24-48 hours.
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