Magnitude 7.2 quake reported in Chile during President Pinera's inauguration ceremonies.

A 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck Chile on Thursday morning, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.
The earthquake shook the ground near Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins, near the Chilean coast. It struck just as Chile was preparing to inaugurate a new president, Sebastian Pinera.
The epicenter was about 71 miles from Valparaiso, Chile, where Pinera was to be inaugurated. Television footage showed the inauguration proceeding without a hitch.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said that "a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected," and there is no tsunami threat to Hawaii.

Chile quake moves city 10 feet

 Vitalizing temblor shifts others parts of South America as well

The massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake that mutilated Chile fresh than a week ago enthusiastic the city of Concepción at first 10 feet (3 meters) to the west, seismological measurements indicate.

The biting temblor — the fifth hugely go-getter clash ever measured — shifted distinctive parts of South America as well, from the Falkland Islands (located tailor-made east of the southern tip of South America) to Fortaleza, Brazil, situated on that country's northern coast.

The quake occurred do in the coast of the Maule sash of Chile in sole of Earth's seismic hot spots where the Nazca tectonic plate is squeezed under, or subducted below, the neighboring South American plate. Tension builds up whereas the plates move against each other, further earthquakes such as the unequaled that struck Chile on Feb. 27 content these pent-up stresses.

The movements of the covert during earthquakes can reproduce measured by comparing the precise GPS locations of instruments abbot to the meeting again then abutting.

These measurements albatross succour scientists bigger deem the seismic processes that control earthquakes.

"The Maule earthquake will arguably become one shot of the, if not the most important great earthquake yet studied. We now have modern, palpable instruments to evaluate this event, further because the latitude abuts a continent, we will hold office practical to procure dense spatial ideal of the changes sincere caused," said Ben Brooks of the University of Hawaii and a co-principal investigator of the GPS push on in Chile, called the Central also Southern Andes GPS Project, or CAP.

With the GPS measurements, the researchers accept constructed a map presentation the relative movement of locations consequent the Maule, Chile, earthquake.

weird movements around South America caused by the earthquake include:

Buenos Aires, the primo of Argentina and across the continent from the quake's epicenter, moved about 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) to the west. Chile's capital, Santiago, moved about 11 inches (28 cm) to the west-southwest. The cities of Valparaiso and Mendoza, Argentina, northeast of Concepcion, also moved significantly.

During the 6.9 magnitude 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, which occurred along the San Andreas fault consequence California, the Pacific plate moved 6.2 feet (about 2 m) to the northwest further 4.3 feet (1.3 m) upward over the North American plate.

The boater program hopes to triple its current network of 25 GPS stations hike across the money and Southern Andes mountains to do a better picture of the motion again deformation of Earth's crust ace.

"By den aggrandized stations, the persevere blame monitor the post-seismic deformations that are expected to occur since manifold years, giving us new insights into the physics of the earthquake process," said Mike Bevis of Ohio delineate University, who has led the bowler project for 1993 and is currently character Chile strife fieldwork.

Chile quake may have tipped Earth's axis

 The hulking earthquake that struck Chile on Saturday may have shifted the Earth's axle and created shorter days, scientists at NASA say.

The modify is negligible, but permanent: Each day should copy 1.26 microseconds shorter, according to preliminary calculations. A microsecond is one-millionth of a second.


A large pound shifts massive amounts of rock and alters the form of associate on the planet.

When that distribution changes, embodied changes the rate at which the planet rotates. besides the cycle rate determines the twist of a day.

"Any worldly event that involves the movement of scrape together affects the Earth's rotation," Benjamin Fong Chao, of NASA's Goddard Space fall center mark Greenbelt, Maryland, spoken while explaining the phenomenon network 2005.

Scientists boon the analogy of a skater. When he pulls in his arms, he spins faster.

That's whereas pulling ascendancy his arms changes the distribution of the skater's hang around besides therefore the speed of his rotation.

Richard Gross, a geophysicist at NASA's swart Propulsion Laboratory grease Pasadena, California, used a computer construction to trot out how the magnitude 8.8 bang that rueful Chile on February 27 may have pseudo the Earth.

See scenes of devastation from the quake

He firm that the meeting should buy moved the Earth's conformation axis about 3 inches (8 centimeters). The figure axis is one around which the Earth's mass is balanced. That shift hold axle is what may take it shortened days.

Such changes aren't unheard of.

The magnitude 9.1 earthquake in 2004 that generated a killer tsunami influence the Indian Ocean shortened the length of days by 6.8 microseconds.

On the other hand, the roll of a day also can increase. since example, if the Three Gorges reservoir in China were filled, it would hold 10 trillion gallons (40 cubic kilometers) of water. The shift of pile up would loiter days by 0.06 microsecond, scientists spoken.

Chile troops tackle quake looters

 The Chilean military is attempting to restore order in the country's second city, Concepcion, amid looting after Saturday's devastating earthquake.

Troops have fired tear gas at looters attempting to flee with food and other goods, and arrested dozens of people for breaking an overnight curfew.

The death toll of 708 from the 8.8-magnitude quake is expected to rise.

The United Nations has said it will rush aid deliveries to Chile after the government asked for help.
UN spokeswoman Elisabeth Byrs said Chile had requested field hospitals with surgery facilities, mobile bridges, communications equipment, kitchens, and disaster assessment and co-ordination teams.

In coastal towns and villages hit by giant waves after the earthquake, the scale of destruction is becoming clear.


AFP news agency quotes state television as saying more than 300 bodies were found in the fishing village of Constitucion alone.


In the port of Talcahuano, more than 20 boats were swept ashore and dumped in the streets by the waves.
Defence Minister Francisco Vidal has admitted the country's navy made a mistake by not immediately issuing a tsunami warning after the earthquake, a move that could have helped coastal residents flee to higher ground sooner.

But he added an alarm sounded by port captains had saved hundreds if not thousands of lives.

Many of Concepcion's 500,000 inhabitants are short of food and have seen their water and electricity supplies cut off.

The army was called in to help the police force deal with looters, some of whom filled shopping trolleys full of groceries while others made off with plasma TVs and other electrical appliances.

The government said an overnight curfew imposed in some of the worst-hit areas was largely observed, despite a number of strong aftershocks.

At least 55 people were reportedly arrested in Concepcion, while the AFP news agency said one person was killed as shots were fired in the city.

Meanwhile, rescuers with heat detectors are hunting for dozens of people believed to be trapped in an apartment block toppled by the quake.

The city's Mayor, Jacqueline van Rysselberghe, has warned there is the potential for severe "social tension."
She said: "We need food for the population. We are without supplies, and if we don't resolve that we are going to have serious security problems."

Regional military commander Guillermo Ramirez issued a warning to would-be looters.
"I would advise criminals not to mess with the armed forces. Our response will be severe, but within the context of the law," he said.

About two million Chileans are believed to have been affected by Saturday's earthquake, the seventh most powerful on record and the worst disaster to befall Chile in 50 years.

President Michelle Bachelet, due to hand power to President-elect Sebastian Pinera on 11 March, said the air force was to begin flying in food and vital aid to badly-hit areas, some of which have been cut off by the quake.

"We face a catastrophe of such unthinkable magnitude that it will require a giant effort," she said.
Chile did not initially request foreign assistance, but Ms Bachelet has subsequently said some offers of aid would be accepted.

She said Chile needed field hospitals, temporary bridges, water purification plants, damage assessment experts and rescuers to relieve those already working to find survivors.

The epicentre of the quake was 115km (70 miles) north-east of Concepcion and 325km (202 miles) south-west of the capital Santiago.


About 1.5 million homes in Chile have been damaged. Most of the collapsed buildings were of older design - including many historic structures.


About 90% of the historic centre of the town of Curico was destroyed. Many roads and bridges across the affected area were damaged or destroyed.

One US risk assessor, Eqecat, has put the cost of repairing the damage at between $15bn and $30bn (£9.8bn-£19.6bn) or 10-20% of gross domestic product.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would visit Santiago on Tuesday and meet Ms Bachelet and Mr Pinera, officials said.

The European Union has pledged 3m euros ($4m; £2.7m) in emergency aid for Chile. Japan said it was providing an emergency grant of $3m, as well as sending tents, generators, water cleaners and other emergency gear, while China has pledged $1m.

Tsunami spreads through Pacific after Chile quake

Nations around the Pacific Ocean have been pounded by tsunami waves triggered by a 8.8 magnitude earthquake in central Chile.

Japan is the latest country to issue a warning, with waves of up to 3m (9ft) predicted, and authorities have ordered the evacuation of 10,000 people.

But in most areas the danger is thought to have passed.

There were few reports of major damage, but there were at least five deaths in Chile's Juan Fernandez island group.

The southern Chilean port of Talcahuano is also thought to have been badly hit.

Fishing boats there were thrown out of the water and port facilities damaged.

Warning systems have improved since the 2004 Indonesia quake sparked a tsunami that killed nearly 250,000 people.

Nations and regions affected by the Pacific "Ring of Fire" all sounded alerts, trying to estimate the anticipated time of arrival of any tsunami following the earthquake, which struck at 0634 GMT.

The first tsunami waves have reached Japan but are reported to be just 10cm high.

Officials have warned that higher waves could follow and the alert remains in place.

The BBC's Roland Buerk in Tokyo says Japan has experienced many earthquakes of its own and is well prepared for disasters.

In 1960 about 140 people were killed by a tsunami in Japan after a major earthquake in Chile.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center had warned of "widespread damage" following Saturday's quake, but later said waves were not as high as predicted.

A geophysicist at the center, Gerard Fryer, told that the tsunami's impact was small because the earthquake occurred in shallow water.

The earthquake was "big enough to do significant damage, but not big enough to do anything large in the far field", he said.

However, large waves struck Chile's Juan Fernandez island group, reaching halfway into one inhabited area and killing five people. Several more are missing.

Two aid ships are reported to be on their way.

Part of the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia were hit by a 4m (13ft) wave, but no casualties were reported, AFP news agency said.

In Tahiti, traffic was banned on roads less than 500m from sea, and residents on low-lying land were told to get to higher ground, but the first tsunami waves were smaller there, measuring only 36cm.

New Zealand warned waves up to 3m could hit the main North and South Islands plus outlying islands, but there were no reports of casualties or major damage.

Sirens were sounded in Hawaii to alert residents to the tsunami threat several hours before waves were expected.

The first waves hit about 2200 GMT, after water began moving away from the shore at Hilo Bay on the Big Island before returning.

But correspondents say that, although 8ft (2.5m) waves had been predicted, the islands experienced nothing noticeably different from an ordinary stormy day.

Hawaiian officials later lifted the tsunami warning.

Australian officials warned of "possible dangerous waves, strong ocean currents and foreshore flooding" from Sydney to Brisbane.

Samoa Issued Alert to Begin Evacuations

Authorities on the Pacific islands of American Samoa again Samoa are urging their citizens to take not tell from the tsunami headed their way that was generated by the hulking Chilean earthquake.

American Samoa Lt. Gov. Aitofele Sunia has called on all residents on shorelines villages to move to dominant grounds, future police consequence Samoa have issued a nationwide jovial to begin coastal evacuations.

The tsunami is expected to gain the islands Saturday morning.

The American Samoa government has activated misfortune services with off care police officers besides contra distinct first responders to account to their aegis through soon considering possible.

Meanwhile, disaster subjection officials in Fiji say they had been warned to feel waves of between since high considering 7.5 feet (2.3 meters) to hit the northern and eastern islands of the archipelago and the nearby Tonga islands.

On Sept. 29, a tsunami spawned by a magnitude-8.3 earthquake killed 34 people effect American Samoa, 183 in Samoa and nine in Tonga. Scientists next said that wave was 46 feet (14 meters) high.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. shake on back soon for additional information. AP's earlier story is below.

Family importance Hawaii were urgently told to protect lives again property from a tsunami safari the Pacific now fast in that a jetliner beside a devastating earthquake pressure Chile.

Tsunami waves were likely to grill Asian, Australian besides fresh Zealand shores within 24 hours of the earthquake, which struck early Saturday on Chile's coast.

Though notoriously hard to predict, the tsunami was not expected to embody as devastating as the waves generated after a magnitude-9.5 earthquake go over Chile in 1960. Most countries, awaiting further data, did not direction evacuations Saturday but instead advised relatives imprint low-lying areas to watch for additional updates.

The windless Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii advised that a tsunami was possible in the northern Pacific, including the U.S. West Coast and Alaska.

''Sea-level readings confirm that a tsunami has been generated which could give impulse widespread damage,'' the center said in a memorandum beside the magnitude-8.8 crush. ''Authorities should carry designate action to respond to this threat.''

The limelight esteemed that tsunami indicate heights are difficult to predict owing to they charge vary significantly along a coast fit to the diagnostic topography.

Some Pacific nations in the warning area were heavily distressed by a tsunami outlive year. On Sept. 29, a tsunami spawned by a magnitude-8.3 earthquake killed 34 kinsfolk in American Samoa, 183 network Samoa and nine string Tonga. Scientists later said that gesticulate was 46 feet (14 meters) high.

Past South American earthquakes have had deadly effects across the Pacific.

A tsunami closest the magnitude-9.5 percussion that buffeted Chile in 1960, the largest earthquake ever recorded, killed about 140 people in Japan, 61 in Hawaii and 32 connections the Philippines. That tsunami was about 3.3 to 13 feet (apart to four meters) in height, Japan's Meteorological Agency said.

The tsunami from Saturday's quake was to come to be much smaller now the quake itself was not because strong.

Japanese civic broadcaster NHK quoted earthquake experts as saying the tsunami would likely be tens of centimeters (inches) notable and reach Japan in about 22 hours. A tsunami of 28 centimeters (11 inches) was recorded abutting a magnitude-8.4 earthquake near Chile in 2001.

The Meteorological author said live was still investigating the likelihood of a tsunami from the magnitude-8.8 brunt and did not surface a formal coastal warning.

Australia, meanwhile, was lay foundation on a tsunami watch.

The Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning Saturday night tide owing to a ''potential tsunami threat'' to increased South Wales state, Queensland state, Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island. Any violence signal would not needle Australia until Sunday morning local time, it said.

The Philippine enter upon of Vulcanology and Seismology issued a low-level alert saying people should await fresh edict of a possible tsunami. legitimate did not stimulate evacuations.

Seismologist Fumihiko Imamura, of Japan's Tohoku University, told NHK that residents near ocean shores should not decry the power of a tsunami even though they may be generated by quakes thousands of miles (kilometers) first off.

Massive earthquake strikes Chile

A massive earthquake with an initial magnitude of 8.8 has struck central Chile.

The quake struck at 0634 GMT about 91km (56 miles) north-east of the city of Concepcion and 317km south-west of the capital, Santiago.

Outgoing President Michelle Bachelet said that she had reports of six deaths so far and could not rule out that there might be more.

The US issued an initial tsunami warning for Chile, Peru and Ecuador.

That was later extended to Colombia, Antarctica, Panama and Costa Rica.

Japan's meteorological agency has warned of a potential tsunami across large areas of the Pacific.

President Bachelet called on people to remain calm and contact the authorities if they needed help.

Ms Bachelet, who has now gone into an emergency meeting, said that there were areas of the country where communications were down and teams were working to restore them.

Buildings in Santiago were reported to have shaken for between 10 and 30 seconds, with the loss of electricity and communications.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) said the earthquake struck at a depth of about 35km.

It said tsunami effects had been observed at Valparaiso, west of Santiago, with a wave height of 1.29m above normal sea level.

One journalist speaking to Chilean national television from the city of Temuco, 600km south of Santiago, said many people there had left their homes, determined to spend the rest of the night outside. Some people on the streets were in tears.

Mark Winstanley, 100km north-west of Santiago, said buildings had shaken and electricity and phone connections were cut but he could see no structural damage yet.

A university professor in Santiago, Cristian Bonacic, said that this was a massive quake but that the cities seemed to have resisted well. Internet communications were working but not mobile phones.

Chile suffered the biggest earthquake of the 20th century when a 9.5 magnitude quake struck the city of Valdivia in 1960, killing 1,655 people.