Chile's Emergency
Director Admits Incompetence In Handling
Massive Quake
SANTIAGO - Director of Chile's National
Emergency Office (Onemi) Carmen Fernandez
said Monday that the country lacks an
organization with sufficient coordination
capacity to face major catastrophes like the
8.8-magnitude earthquake on Feb. 27.
"We were among the first ones recognizing
that as a country we yet don't have an
organization with enough capacity to face an
event of this kind, the most serious in 50
years. It took us by surprise, and I am
honest about saying that," Fernandez said.
Onemi is an organization under the Chilean
Interior Ministry. The organization has been
criticized for not issuing a tsunami alert
after the earthquake, failing to provide
communications in the most affected areas,
being behind in aid delivery, and issuing an
inaccurate death toll, which was reduced
from an original 802 to 497.
Meanwhile, Chilean President-elect Sebastian
Pinera said troops will continue being
deployed to maintain order and assist
related work in the most affected zones.
Pinera also said his government will extend
the catastrophe state in the regions in
need, where the use of public forces is
allowed and the most needed tools and aid
can arrive faster.
He regretted the current government didn't
decree the catastrophe state on Feb. 27 just
after the quake. Otherwise, the main
affected cities could have avoided
plundering, he added.
Pinera also criticized the lack of
coordination between the government and the
military as they didn't immediately issue
the tsunami alert. This, he said, was clear
proof that "we were not ready to face an
emergency like the one we had last month."
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