8.8-magnitude earthquake hits Chile, 147 dead

A damaged new office building after a major earthquake struck in Concepcion is seen in this video grab. A massive magnitude-8.8 earthquake struck south-central Chile early on Saturday, knocking down homes and hospitals, and triggering a tsunami. –Reuters Photo/TVN 

 SANTIAGO, Chile: A massive magnitude-8.8 earthquake struck south-central Chile early on Saturday, killing at least 147 people, Interior Minister Edmundo Perez Yoma said. The quake triggered a tsunami, knocking down buildings in the capital Santiago.

President Michelle Bachelet declared a ''state of catastrophe'' in central Chile and added that more deaths were possible. She added that a tsunami could hit Chile's Easter Island and that coastal areas of the island were being evacuated.

Telephone and power lines were down, making a quick assessment of the damage difficult in the early morning darkness.

“Never in my life have I experienced a quake like this, it's like the end of the world,” one man told local television from the city of Temuco, where the quake damaged buildings and forced staff to evacuate the regional hospital.

The US Geological Survey said the earthquake struck 56 miles northeast of the city of Concepcion at a depth of 22 miles at 3:34 am local time. Few hours later, two strong aftershocks of 6.9-magnitude and 5.5-magnitude shook the Chilean capital again. 

Chilean television and radio stations said several buildings collapsed in the city of Curico and that there was damage to buildings in the historic center of the capital Santiago, about 200 miles north of the epicenter.

The capital's international airport was forced to close, a highway bridge collapsed and chunks of buildings fell into the street.

In the moments after the quake, people streamed onto the streets of the capital, hugging each other and crying.

There were blackouts in parts of Santiago and communications were still down in the area closest to the epicenter.

Bachelet urged people to stay calm. “With a quake of this size we undoubtedly can't rule out more deaths and probably injuries,” she said.

An earthquake of magnitude 8 or over can cause “tremendous damage,” the USGS says. The quake that devastated Haiti's capital Port-au-Prince on Jan. 12 was rated magnitude 7.0.MORE DETAILS.....