With the death toll creeping higher,
Numerous oceanfront towns, like Lloca, Dichato and
“”We need food! We need water!”” said a beleaguered
Concepcion Mayor
“”Our firefighters, our personnel, don’t want to keep doing this work in these circumstances,”” she said. “”If a bigger contingent (of soldiers) isn’t sent here quickly the people will begin to take the law into their own hands.””
Fire raged in a downtown Concepcion shopping mall. A radio reporter said she saw people in a vehicle toss a Molotov cocktail into the collection of stores just before the fire erupted. Firefighters could do nothing: They had no water. The building, looted earlier in the day, was collapsing under the flames.
President
The government promised to distribute food, water and other essential supplies on Monday in Concepcion and other communities. But aid seemed to trickle in, slowed by mangled roads, collapsed bridges and the lack of electricity. A small plane bringing aid to Concepcion crashed Monday, killing all six people on board.
Bachelet called on power companies to restore energy to hospitals and clinics and urged local authorities to quickly identify and bury bodies. In
Bachelet declared a 30-day state of emergency for the coastal states of
The possibility of a “”social explosion”” quickly emerged as the government’s “”worst fear,”” the leading Chilean newspaper El Mercurio reported, noting the emergency decree was agreed to only after intense debate because of its potential symbolism.
“”Coordination between civilian and military authorities is functioning correctly,”” government spokeswoman Pilar Armanet said. “”We are attempting to normalize basic services, with the difficulties that implies.””
In a sign of the government’s alarm over deteriorating conditions, Defense Minister
Deputy Interior Minister
“”Undoubtedly we can’t have the military on every corner, but public order is in the hands of the armed forces and you must trust in that,”” he said.
In Concepcion, rescue efforts centered on a 15-story apartment building that collapsed onto its side. Rescue workers equipped with search dogs and architectural blueprints sliced through concrete and punched triangular holes into the side of the building in hopes of finding survivors.
On Sunday, eight bodies and about two dozen survivors were pulled out but many people were believed trapped. Early Monday, fire brigade commander
“”We heard knocking and some glass being broken,”” he told reporters at the site. By afternoon, another body had been recovered and rescuers continued the search for survivors.
In
Slow to ask for help, Bachelet has said she would welcome international aid. The United Nations said Monday it would rush deliveries, and
In
Crowley said
U.S. officials said they sent the Chilean government a 10-page “”grocery list”” of available items, services and workers, including American cardiologists, orthopedists and anesthesiologists.
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(McDonnell reported from