8.8 on the Richter

Dancing to the music, laughing until we peed our pants and getting ready to finish our birthday celebration for our beloved Katy we suddenly began to feel the building sway back and forth. At first I thought it was the over crowded floor just above us but seeing the panic begin to cross the faces of my fellow friends I soon realized that it was nothing of the sort. Rocio leaped acrossed the floor trying to drag us out of the bar. We quickly evacuated the building though at that point the building was yet again standing still even if our knees weren´t as capable. We really had no idea of the imensity and utter destruction that had occurred. Passing by some of the local firefighters they briefly informed us that it seemed to have come from Concepcion, the second largest city in Chile. Arriving at the house we bantered back and forth still not realizing what had happened when suddenly once again the ground began to tremble. We waited in the hallway until we felt that the danger had passed. We awoke to something unimaginable, cities turned upside down, entire families swallowed up by the ocean. A catastrophe that had reaped its claws into the ground and left towns and cities alike in ruins. It is truly hard to believe such a thing could happen even if the proof is right in front of you. Its like a bad dream and you are just waiting to wake up. It wasnt a dream, and I continue to watch from our television something that seems to have arrived for the pits of hell. Aside from the obvious loss of homes, loved ones, any sort of basic essentials, there had been deliquents that were setting fires to the buildings, breaking into the stores and houses that barely still stood and doing so at gun point. The people were without any protection given by the police, scared and devestated. They began to take the law into their own hands creating a sort of anarchy that currently they are now trying to mantain. They imposed a curfew and those who can not or will not return to their homes before 8 o´clock pm will be arrested. Flipping through the channels one can only see the tragedy that has harvested itself in the heart of Chile. There have been several ¨maremotos,¨ which are earthquakes that occur below the ocean floor; tsunamis that continue to drag towns into its depths and replicas that continue to threated the stability of the remaining buildings. There are many that are without food and water; babies without diapers or milk, sleeping in the streets without tents or sleeping bags, without lights and without any way to communicate with their families to see if the had survived. There are many volunteers that are uniting together and asking for these basic essentials.... batteries, flashlights, canned food, mattresses, etc. I am trying to gather up people to head up there and help out but what I ask from you all is to look through some of your old stow aways, tents that you never use, flashlights, batteries, diapers, sleeping bags, things that you think the chileans might need. I am looking up more information and will send an address so that those who want to help can send the necesities to us here in Chile. Please, try and do what you can!