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Guest Post: The Chilean Earthquake From A First Person Perspective
Submitted by regular Zero Hedge guest author Gonzalo Lira
Hello Gringos!
I've been under the weather for the last few days. So last night I went to sleep early, around 11pm.
Around 3:15am, I suddenly woke up, even though I usually sleep straight through until the dawn. There was no obvious reason to wake up at such an odd hour. Claire, my dog, was sound asleep. Out my window on the 15th floor of my building, all the buildings across from the Los Leones golf course were quiet.
But I was wide awake.
So finally, I decided to make the best of it—I got my laptop and surfed the net, wide awake, reading (of all things) about what the iPad might mean to newspaper publishing—when the earthquake hit.
"Hit" makes it sound too dramatic—initially, it was a a minor tremer with a slow circular roll. The clock on my computer read 3:34am.
Now, a tremor like this is nothing unusual. Since I live on the 15th floor of my 15 storey building—and since this is Chile—I'm used to tremors. To paraphrase Linda Evangelista, I don't get out of bed for anything under 6.0 on the Richter scale.
So at first, I didn't think much of this tremor—because that's what it was, at first: A minor tremor.
But then, it refused to peter out. I got out of bed but stayed in my room—I heard something smash down on the opposite side of my apartment—and then something else crashed, only much nearer.
The floor was moving around and around—you felt as if you were standing dead center of a swiftly spinning merry-go-round, trying to keep your balance. There was no up-and-down motion, only round-and-round.
The television started moving, as did the bed, and I could hear glass shattering from other parts of my apartment. Claire—awake finally—was whining and brushing my leg—but I couldn't quite stay on my feet, bouncing off the edge of my bed to my feet, then losing my balance and falling back down again, then to my feet again.
From the living room of my apartment, I could hear furniture crashing, and from the kitchen, cutlery clattered about like a pocketful of coins jangled by an impatient gambler.
I'd left my room dark when I'd started surfing the net—so I had a clear view out my picture window when all of a sudden, all the street lights of the city snapped off all at once, while my building kept on whirling.
It lasted about 90 seconds. To me, it felt somewhat less than the '85 quake—which happened exactly 25 years ago this coming March 3. That one was actually two, back to back, the first a 7.4, the second two minutes later a 7.7.
News reports are saying that it was an 8.8 on the Richter scale—about 50 times stronger than the Haiti quake, which was only a 7.9. The epicenter was 340 km to the south-east of Santiago. So if I had to guess, I'd say we in Santiago got hit with a 7.7 on the Richter.
I was looking out the picture window of my bedroom, and watched all the buildings lining the other side of the golf course. The Los Leones golf course is in the middle of Vitacura and Las Condes—it's like Santiago's Central Park, with high-end apartment buildings lining it on all sides.
The tall buildings across the golf course were swaying from side to side, just like wheat does with a gentle breeze.
Once it stopped, I started making an assesment—as you can imagine, all my books fell, as did the bookcases. The refrigerator had moved about a foot and a half. Et cetera, boring et cetera—it looked like a band of hooligans had tossed my apartment.
A lot of the plaster and stucco on the walls cracked; in a few places, it came off altogether. But all the structural walls seemed okay.
My cell phone suddenly rang—but I couldn't find it. I could hear it ring in the kitchen, but curiously, it sounded muffled. Hours later, I discovered that my cell phone fell off a counter in my kitchen, into an open drawer—and then that drawer closed.
My living room is rectangular, with the long side facing the golf course—that side is made up of three enormous sliding glass windows—3 by 3 meters. The windows are always closed when I go to sleep—with the latch on. But somehow, these three enormous windows had come unlocked, and had slid around at random.
In my kitchen, from a cupboard over the counter, a box of salt fell out, fell on the counter, and naturally spilt stall—yet when I found the box, it was upright. The pile of spilt salt was right next to the box—like a murder victim—yet the red-and-white salt box stood there, faking innocence, like a kid saying "I didn't do that!"
All of those bottles of fancy vinegars and olive oils that people gave me as housewarming gifts, but which I never used? Shattered, one and all—the kitchen smells as if I were putting together a really interesting salad.
Once I'd ascertained the extent of the damages, I got dressed, packed a few important things—laptop, passport, checkbook, cigarettes—and headed out.
Down the service stairwell I went. My building is rather unusual—there is one apartment per floor, and the main elevator door opens directly into the apartment. A lot of the tennants are older people, so I knocked on the doors of a few people, to make sure they were okay. They were, thankfully.
When I got to the eighth floor, there was a flood of water—the main line had ruptured, and was spilling water down the stairwell like a cascade. Somehow, I got all wet, as I made my way down.
On the ground floor, a few tennants and the night man were milling about. Because Chile has had so many earthquakes, people are prepared. My building had a detailed protocol—so the gas for the building had been cut, as had the water (the deluge was just the run-off already in the pipes), the back-up electrical system was working, and the elevators had been shut down. I called my mom from a landline—she and Bob were fine, as were my sister and my brother-in-law and neice and nephew.
So since there was nothing, really, to do, I walked with Claire to my mom's, about a mile away, around the corner from the golf course. She and Bob were outside, in the patio of their building. Claire somehow found a tennis ball, so at her insistence, we wound up playing penalty-kicker-and-the-canine-goalie, which is her absolutely favorite game.
Just before dawn, the lights came back on. The cell network wors intermitently, mostly because everyone's calling everyone else.
It's just before 11:00 am as I write this back on the 15th floor of my apartment. I plan on nominating the man who invented the elevator for sainthood—14 flights of stairs is no fun.
—there's another aftershock going on.
What I find most interesting is, I woke up a good 20 minutes before the earthquake—I mean, wide-eyed, won't-be-sleeping-again-tonight awake.
But my dog only woke up half-way through the quake.
I'm sure tha means something—I have no idea what.
In Santiago, everything is calm. Concepción has really suffered, but from the news reports, they seem to be okay.
There's a strong aftershock going on—my heart is pounding, but I'm happy.
Gonzalo Lira
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Good luck and stay safe.
Thank goodness you and you're family are alright. Take care and sending Blessings to the earthquake and tsunami victims and their family.
Once I'd ascertained the extent of the damages, I got dressed, packed a few important things—laptop, passport, checkbook, cigarettes—and headed out. >>
All useless things in a crisis...............
Thanks for posting this first person story.
Thanks for the first-hand account! Interesting reading.
Glad all is ok. I think there's a "higher power" expressing concern over our stock market shenanigans.
it was a setup to get at some of those Haitian funds...
(just trying to fit in with all these tin hats around here.. yes, toyota has no problems with their cars..house prices will go down 70%, etc)
I have awoken prior to two earthquakes in southern California. I have also been awakened by an earthquake.
I always thought it interesting that I woke prior because I am a very sound sleeper and almost never get up at night.
Stay safe people... be prepared for these earth events as it seems they are increasing in frequency and severity.
may the Lord look over everyone
Thanks for the account. Writing from coastal California (I read there is a possible tsunami warning), I, too, know where my gas and water main shut-offs are located and have a wrench handy, and have taught my teenage son the same. Your high rises sound like they are well-built and on rollers. Glad you're safe.
I was in Marin County during the 1989 Loma Prieta quake (7.1 Richter scale and 60 miles from the epicenter) and that was enough seismic fun for me.
If I'd been 15 floors up in your apartment during that massive quake you might have had more to clean up than salt and olive oil!
Glad you and your family are OK and hope the casualties in Concepcion are nothing like Haiti though the damage to the infrastructure looks severe from what is being shown on TV in the US.
Any idea what this will do to EOC? I have about 5% of my portfolio there.
Good luck to you.
On a similar note, makes you wonder when the next quake may hit CA (where I live). And, given that very few people have earthquake insurance (prohibitively expensive), how will a damaging quake impact the already fragile housing market -- and subsequently all the underlying securities?
Well, I'm sure Ben & Barack could make it better.
"all useless things in a crisis"......thats a bold statement. since september '08 i havent been 20 feet from my laptop. i think most zerohedgies know that when shit hits the fan, you trade.
Earthquake would be the best thing for CA housing market to absorb the overhang. Side effects make it not quite worth the hassle.
Detroit, well sure its not likely, but the application fits.
God is speaking to us?
Glad you are ok. The population seems lesser then normally crowded cities so you guys will come out fine.
Gonzalo,
Thanks for the very well-written account.
That's a freaky synchronicity. I awoke from a nightmare at around the same time. It had to do with a collapsing Palace of Auburn Hills of all Places. I'm not from Detroit. Only been there on a layover. In the dream "I" was running around frantically. Couldn't figure out why.
Then I woke up and all I could think of was all the other destruction building dreams I've had a few months ago. Images of damaged building collapsing.
I am afraid it portend to more PTB bank and Warfare model based destruction or maybe the big global earthquake.
http://funy1.blogspot.com/2010/02/foundations-of-earth-are-unstable.html
Sounds like your dog is a sound sleeper, is she old? Thanks for the account and best wishes.
The wine regions weren't affected were they?
great account, well said.
You must be rich. Big ass apartment next to the Los Leones Golf Course in Santiago.
Some day I hope to be as rich as you.
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