First it was Haiti, then it was Chile. :-(

[MIJ-VI]

27 February 2010: An earthquake with a magnitude of 8.8 struck central Chile early this morning.

[i_got_a_mohawk]

At least Chile is generally more prepared for these things, so it wasn't as destructive as what Haiti faced. They'll also be back up and running (so-to-speak) long before Haiti. Still hard to try and imagine what being through an earthquake of that magnitude is like!

Has there been anything more on the Tsunami warning (which seemed to be for near enough everywhere on the Pacific :-\ )

[Cannabass]

indeed, the reason the Haiti quake was so devastating was the region's lack of preparation. Chile is somewhat of a hotspot for big quakes, so although the Chile quake was hundreds (i've heard estimates from 400-700) of times stronger than the one in Haiti, there was less devastation and the death toll remains (relatively) low.

A good friend of mine is in chile and i've yet to hear from him

thoughts and prayers for those chillin' in chile.

[Dr. Cheese]

Geography also favored Chile when it came to the earthquake's impact. The epicenter was 21 miles offshore and the closest big city was 70 miles away whereas the earthquake in Haiti was almost directly under Port-Au-Prince. Also you cannot really blame Haiti for lack of preparation since it had not had an earthquake in 200 years.

I would also like to note that the impact of the earthquake in Chile is apparently much worse than originally thought. Tsunamis devastated the coast, and roads, water, electricity, and communications have pretty much been wiped out in Conception. It is also worth noting that the part of Chile that was struck is the poorest part of the country, and it has suffered "looting" and lawlessness much like Haiti did. I put "looting" in quotes because I really cannot blame hungry and thirsty people for getting food any way they can.

I'm just waiting for Pat Robertson to tell what the people of Chile did to bring down God's wrath as he did when Haiti was struck.

[i_got_a_mohawk]

The Haitian government has been warned repeated over the last 25-30 years that the country was on the verge of a major earthquake. Granted, this isn't much an impoverished country like Haiti could do, but they were warned that there was one on the horizon.

[Dr. Cheese]

Originally Posted by i_got_a_mohawk

The Haitian government has been warned repeated over the last 25-30 years that the country was on the verge of a major earthquake. Granted, this isn't much an impoverished country like Haiti could do, but they were warned that there was one on the horizon.

Rich countries tend to put off stuff if there is no pressure from the people to do something, let alone an impoverished nation like Haiti.

[i_got_a_mohawk]

Originally Posted by Dr. Cheese

Rich countries tend to put off stuff if there is no pressure from the people to do something, let alone an impoverished nation like Haiti.

Which is why I said there isn't exactly much that they could have done.

[Unrepresented]

Shouldn't we have another year or two before the earth ends? Which horseman of the apocalypse brought the earthquakes?