The earthquake, which was the fifth largest since 1900, lasted for 90 seconds, but multiple aftershocks continued in the capital city of Santiago throughout the afternoon. For Princeton students with close connections to those affected, the aftershocks continue days later.
Rodrigo Munoz Rogers ’12 has family members in Chile, many of whom live near Santiago. When he heard about the earthquake, he said, “I immediately called my dad to ask about my family.” Rogers’ family turned out to be safe.
“I was still sad, because some of the images on the news were places I am familiar with,” Rogers said.
Tommy Lopez ’10, who studied abroad at the Catholic University of Chile in Santiago last year, said he immediately contacted his friends in Chile when heard the news.
His friends told him “that everything started shaking, and they tried to leave the building because they were afraid the building would collapse on them,” he said.
Jonathan Gary ’11, who interned in Chile last year, said a friend in Chile told him that “the earthquake caused lots of broken glass and fallen picture frames, but no significant structural damage overall.”
Following the disaster, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet declared a “state of catastrophe” for the country.
Lopez lauded Bachelet’s response to the situation.
“The President of Chile has responded very well to the crisis,” he said. “She has held press conferences with different committees to eliminate water shortages and food shortages.”
But politics professor John Londregan disagreed, saying, “the government was slow to call out the armed forces to assist in rescue activities and to keep order, with unfortunate consequences.”
President Obama offered support and assistance from the United States to the Chilean people.
Bachelet has noted that Chile is in particular need of field hospitals, temporary bridges, water purification systems and rescue workers.
While Chile’s earthquake released hundreds of times more energy than the recent quake in Haiti, the human cost was much smaller, in part because the epicenter of Haiti’s earthquake was just miles from Port-au-Prince, the island’s roughly 700,000-person capital.
Because earthquakes are also common in Chile, its government has enforced strict building codes.
Londregan also noted that while Chile “is one of the most prosperous countries in Latin America, Haiti in contrast is one of the poorest countries in the hemisphere.
Moreover, earthquakes [in Haiti] are more rare, and building standards reflected both conditions.”
Gary said that each quake should be considered separately.
“To compare the two is difficult,” he said, “because horrible personal tragedies were experienced in both regions.”
Read More
Yale University to join Research Collections and Preservation Consortium (ReCAP)
David YunYale University has joined Princeton, Columbia, Harvard, and the New York Public Library in one of the world’s largest library and archives preservation repositories and shared collections, Research Collections and Preservation Consortium, also known as ReCAP.
Yale University has joined Princeton, Columbia, Harvard, and the New York Public Library in one of the world’s largest library and archives preservation repositories and shared collections, Research Collections and Preservation Consortium, also known as ReCAP.
Princeton rising junior passes away in cycling accident
Victoria DaviesKerry Grundlingh ’27 has passed away in a cycling accident near her home in South Africa.
Kerry Grundlingh ’27 has passed away in a cycling accident near her home in South Africa.
15 personas detenidas por ICE en Calle Harrison, explican funcionarios de Princeton
Luke GrippoSegún el alcalde de Princeton, Mark Freda, inicialmente los oficiales de inmigración solamente estaban en busca de una persona. Ana Paola Pazmiño, directora ejecutiva del grupo local de defensa de la inmigración, Resistencia en Acción NJ, reveló que los oficiales detuvieron a estas personas y les pusieron en una camioneta mientras ellos estaban de camino a su trabajo de paisajismo.
Según el alcalde de Princeton, Mark Freda, inicialmente los oficiales de inmigración solamente estaban en busca de una persona. Ana Paola Pazmiño, directora ejecutiva del grupo local de defensa de la inmigración, Resistencia en Acción NJ, reveló que los oficiales detuvieron a estas personas y les pusieron en una camioneta mientras ellos estaban de camino a su trabajo de paisajismo.