United Nations Nations Unies

Office of the Resident Coordinator

Chile • Earthquake Situation Report #3 Date

I. Highlights/Key Priorities

•The number of dead in was lowered from 587 to 316. •The number of people affected remains at an estimated 2 million •Security remains an issue and curfews remain in the provinces of , , Curicó, Concepción, Ñuble, Arauco, Bío Bío.

II. Situation Overview

Five days after the 8.8 earthquake of 27th February 2010, strong aftershocks continue, but no further damages were reported. The official death toll has been corrected and lowered to a number of 528 persons. An estimated 2 million people are affected by the impacts of the earthquake and and the situation in the main affected areas is still critical. The estimated figures on houses destroyed by the earthquake and tsunami vary between 500,000 and 1.5 million. Access to food, drinking water and electricity remain priority needs.

The Government reports that the security situation has improved after the deployment of 14,000 additional troops and the declaration of curfew in several cities.

III. Humanitarian Needs and Response

Education The start of the 2010 school year scheduled for March 1 had to be postponed. Schools in non-affected regions started school on March 3. For the regions Bío Bío and El Maule, the Ministry of Education has granted flexibility for schools to start classes between March 15 and April 5. Nevertheless, schools which have not suffered significant damages and are safe, are encouraged to resume classes on March 8. Preliminary estimations indicate that in the regions of Bío Bío and El Maule 50% of the schools are usable, 30% need repairs, and 20% have been completely destroyed.

Emergency Shelter Forty-five collective centres have been opened in the regions of Valparaiso, Metropolitana, O’Higgins and Maule.

According to information collected by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in the city of , approximately 1294 persons (immigrants and Chilean citizens; including 175 children under 15 years of age) in the municipalities of Santiago Centro and Estación Central are homeless, as well as approx. 1,000 persons in and approx. 579 persons in Recoleta. Their homes have been partially damaged or totally destroyed, and they are in need of temporary shelters, emergency items and food. People are reluctant to move into shelters, since they are afraid that their homes will be burgled.

Emergency Telecoms

Availability of phone networks Region Landlines Mobile Networks 63% 85% El Maule 71% 51% Bío Bío 45% 27% Araucanía 95% 93%

Latest info on different Global Systems for Mobile Communitaion (GSM) stations across the country is as follows: o in Bío-Bío only 19% of GSM towers are functioning; o in Maule only 22% are functioning; o in Santiago and Valparaiso 67% and 64% respectively are functioning.

Food and Nutrition The Ministry of Education, through the National School and Scholarship Advisory Board (JUNAEB), is providing three food rations per day to the population in the affected areas. As of March 2, 65.000 food rations were distributed (out of a total of 5,000,000 food rations available), out of several distribution points in the region of Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins, El Maule, and Bío Bío.

In the regions of Valparaíso and La Araucania, 201.325 food rations were distributed as of March 3.

The Armed Forces sent a ship with 1,200 tonnes of supplies from ONEMI to Valparaiso port. 24 tonnes of nonperishable food items have arrived in Talacahuano bay to be distributed in the affected areas.

The World Food Programme (WFP) has sent 35 mt of food aid, which will arrive tomorrow, and 120 mt are on stand-by.

Health In the 6 regions declared catastrophe zones, there are 130 hospitalary establishments: 11 are non- operational, 15 partially operational and are in being evaluated, and 104 are operational.

Six field hospitals have been installed; 4 have arrived and one other is in transit. 80,000 doses of vaccines for Hepatitis A have been requested.

The Ministry of Health is preparing a public sanitary and health promotion campaign, which will be supported by the Chilean Red Cross

Logistics Limited domestic and international flights are scheduled to resume into and out of the International Airport in Santiago on March 3. The plan is that as of 05 March all international flights are to be operational

Many roads and bridges are still being assessed. The Government of Chile has prioritized the re-opening of major roads in affected areas. However, many sections of Highway 5 – Chile’s longest route that runs north to south of the Panamerican Highway – remain closed.

Electricity is still interrupted in some parts of the country which were affected by the earthquake. Coverage of over 90% has been achieved in the regions of Valparaiso and Metropolitana, and 81.5% in the region Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins. In El Maule, 62% of the region has electricity. In the Bío Bío, electricity remains a problem, for example only 40% of the population of Concepción, Coronel and has access to electricity.

Security In the regions El Maule and Bío Bío, the security situation has returned to normalcy after the deployment of military forces and reinforced police presence.

On 3rd March, the military has declared curfews for the following areas:

o Cauquenes, Constitución, Talca, Sagrada Familia, Molina and Curicó: 00.00h to 06:00h o Province of Concepción: 18:00h to 12:00h o Province of Ñuble: 20:30h to 07:00h o Provinces Bío Bío and Arauco: 20:00h to 06:00 o Chillán and Chillán Viejo: 20:00h – 06:30h

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In terms of public security, no major incidents have been reported for the regions of Valparaíso, Metropolitana, Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins, and La Araucania.

Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene The potable water supply has been reestablished gradually in urban zones and water distribution has also taken place through tankers. In smaller communities and rural zones the distribution of water has been completely suspended and is therefore one of the pressing needs of the population and an urgent element for the humanitarian response.

According to the Government’s Sanitary Services, potable water needs are being met through distribution networks and tanks. Only 2.7% of the population (44,563 inhabitants) of Bío Bío does not have water distribution.

Region Distribution network Tanks, trucks or other Metropolitana 98.4% 1.6% Valparaiso 98.5% 4.8% O’Higgens 99.8% .2% Maule 80.1% 19.9% Bio Bio 47.1% 48.6% Araucania 99.7% 0.3%

IV. Coordination The United Nations Emergency Technical Team (UNETT) has met today for the first time. A 3-day Inter- Agency mission to the affected areas is planned to start on 6 March 2010.

A Virtual On Site Operations Coordination Centre (OSOCC) is functioning.

V. Funding

Aid from various organizations and countries has been arriving to support emergency relief efforts, telecommunications, health, education and food aid.

VI. Contact

Document elaborated by the UNETT. For inquiries or suggestions please contact:

Chile: Alejandro Mañon, UN Coordination Officer [email protected], Tel.: (+562) 654-10-16

Chile: Michael Granadillo, UN Coordination Associate [email protected], Tel: (+562) 654-10-42

For more information, please visit www.reliefweb.int or www.redhum.org.

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