Chile quake hits Church: CEN 3.05.10 p 1. March 16, 2010
Posted by geoconger in Church of England Newspaper, Disaster Relief, La Iglesia Anglicana del Cono Sur de America.trackback
Over 700 have died and more than two million people have been displaced from their homes following a magnitude 8.8 earthquake in Chile on Feb 28.
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet has instituted martial law over the south western coastal region of Maule and the city of Concepción and ordered troops to help deliver food and relief supplies. With Concepción’s 500,000 residents cut off from food and water, looting has broken out and soldiers have fired tear gas to control the crowds.
Bishop Henry Scriven, director of mission for Latin America for CMS-SAMS reports that its has no word of any injuries of its staff in country. The former Bishop of Chile, the Rt. Rev Colin Bazley was visiting family in Santiago and was in their 24th floor apartment when the earthquake struck. “They were shaken, but not stirred!” Bishop Scriven reported.
Communications with the Concepción are difficult, however. Sammy Lugo told SAMS-Ireland the “phone lines have been down and mobile phone signals are weak and unreliable. Even the government hasn’t really known what’s been happening till about 12 hours ago. “
“The news we’re now getting is quite disturbing: riots, looting, people trapped under buildings and even hundreds of people having escaped a few of the local prisons. On the coast some towns have been hit by tsunamis, though things are calmer now on that front,” said Lugo, a lay member of the Diocese of Chile, who recently completed a one-year parish placement in Belfast.
“Thankfully, the news from the Concepción church seems to be ok. We’ve heard news of many of the church families staying together and sharing food and lodgings, as things are much more difficult there.”
On March 2, SAMS Ireland General Secretary Denis Johnston spoke with Bishop Tito Zavala of Chile, who reported that he was taking a team from Santiago to Concepción to survey the damage and to assist church families displaced by the earthquake.
In an email to Anglican Mainstream, Bishop Gregory Venables of Argentina, the Primate of the Church of the Southern Cone stated the earthquake “represents both a setback and a great opportunity to demonstrate the reality of the transformation Christ brings through his Spirit working through his people. I hope we can support our brethren in Christ in Chile strongly at this time. “
