Terremoto en Chile

Cars lie overturned after the highway they were travelling on was destroyed in an earthquake in Santiago February 27, 2010. (REUTERS/Marco Fredes)

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A resident of Talca, Chile, walks amid debris of a destroyed house after a powerful earthquake struck the country early Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/Roberto Candia) #

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Residents look at the body of a dead man lying in a street of Talca, some 275 kilometers south of Santiago, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010, after an 8.8-magnitude struck central Chile. The quake hit 200 miles (325 kilometers) southwest of the capital and the epicenter was just 70 miles (115 kilometers) from Concepcion, Chile's second-largest city. (AP Photo/Roberto Candia) #

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The walls and aisles of a pharmacy in Vina del Mar are seen destroyed after a huge 8.8-magnitude earthquake rocked Chile early on February 27, 2010. The massive quake plunged much of the Chilean capital, Santiago, into darkness as it snapped power lines and severed communications, and AFP journalists spoke of walls and masonry collapsing. People in pajamas fled onto the streets. (MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP/Getty Images) #

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People walk along a highway with a collapsed bridge in the background in the outskirts of Santiago after a huge 8.8-magnitude earthquake rocked Chile early on February 27, 2010. (MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP/Getty Images) #

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A police officer controls the traffic aside of an elevated highway that collapsed in Santiago following a powerful earthquake in central Chile, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/David Lillo) #

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Smoke from a burning building fills the sky in the outskirts of Santiago after a huge 8.8-magnitude earthquake rocked Chile on February 27, 2010. (MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP/Getty Images) #

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A resident takes photos of a building damaged in Talca, Chile, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/Sebastian Martinez) #

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With a computer graphic showing the possible path of tsunami waves from an earthquake in Chile, Dr. Charles McCreery speaks on the phone at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010 in Ewa Beach, Hawaii. The State of Hawaii is under a tsunami warning after an 8.8 magnitude earthquake rattled Chile today. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia) #

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The walls of a hotel in Vina del Mar are seen destroyed after a huge 8.8-magnitude earthquake rocked Chile on February 27, 2010. (MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP/Getty Images) #

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A woman sits in front a quake-damaged house in Talca, Chile, after a 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck the country early Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/Sebastian Martinez) #

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Rescue workers search for victims and survivors after an apartment complex collapsed during an earthquake in Concepcion some 100 km (62 miles) south of the epicenter, February 27, 2010. (REUTERS/Jose Luis Saavedra) #

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A survivor is lowered by a cable as rescue workers search for victims after an apartment complex collapsed during an earthquake in Concepcion, Chile on February 27, 2010. (REUTERS/Jose Luis Saavedra) #

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A man moves his belongings inside his home destroyed in an earthquake in Valparaiso February 27, 2010. (REUTERS/Eliseo Fernandez) #

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A man walks past a wrecked church in Santiago, Chile on February 27, 2010. (MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP/Getty Images) #

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People observe a highway and cars destroyed by an earthquake in Concepcion, Chile on February 27, 2010. (REUTERS/Jose Luis Saavedra) #

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Cyclists observe a bridge that collapsed in an earthquake in Concepcion, Chileon February 27, 2010. (REUTERS/Jose Luis Saavedra) #

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Vehicles sit on a destroyed motorway in Santiago following a powerful earthquake in southern Chile, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010. (AP Photo/Carlos Espinoza) #

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An overturned vehicle sits amidst rubble of a collapsed elevated highway in Santiago, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010. A powerful earthquake struck central Chile early Saturday. (AP Photo/Carlos Espinoza) #

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Residents look at a collapsed building in Concepcion, Chile, Saturday Feb. 27, 2010 after an 8.8-magnitude struck central Chile. The epicenter was 70 miles (115 kilometers) from Concepcion, Chile's second-largest city.(AP Photo) #

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A man carries a child next to a damaged building in Concepcion, Chile, Saturday Feb. 27, 2010 after an 8.8-magnitude struck central Chile. (AP Photo) #

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A resident walks along a damaged street in Talca, Chile, Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010, after a powerful earthquake struck central Chile. (AP Photo/Roberto Candia) #

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An apartment block leans over after an earthquake in Santiago February 27, 2010.(REUTERS/Marco Fredes) #

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An immigrant from Peru steps over debris after a major earthquake destroyed homes along Santo Domingo Street in Santiago February 27, 2010. (REUTERS/Marco Fredes) #

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A man looks at the damage to the Accademy of Fine Arts building in Santiago after a huge 8.8-magnitude earthquake rocked Chile early morning killing at least 147 people, on February 27, 2010. (CLAUDIO SANTANA/AFP/Getty Images) #

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A man rides his bicycle past a destroyed building in Concepcion, Chile, Saturday Feb. 27, 2010 after an 8.8-magnitude struck central Chile. The epicenter was 70 miles (115 kilometers) from Concepcion, Chile's second-largest city. (AP Photo) #

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A man looks at rubble in Valparaiso, Chile, after a huge 8.8-magnitude earthquake rocked the country early morning killing at least 147 people, on February 27, 2010. (JORGE AMENGUAL/AFP/Getty Images) #

El terremoto de 8.8 grados en la escala de Richter que afectó esta madrugada la zona centro–sur de Chile ha dejado 122 muertos, según reportes preliminares de la Oficina Nacional de Emergencia (Onemi) del Ministerio del Interior.

De acuerdo con la Onemi, el epicentro del terremoto se localizó en las inmediaciones de Concepción, unos 519 kilómetros al sur de esta capital, donde se produjeron los mayores daños en infraestructura vial y en viviendas.

El movimiento telúrico, de unos 8.8 grados Richter, es el sexto mayor terremoto en la historia y el peor que ha sacudido a Chile en los últimos 30 años, donde la región sur fue declarada zona de desastre.

La Onemi informó que el terremoto se produjo a las 3:35 horas y el epicentro se localizó a 63 kilómetros al suroeste de la ciudad de Cauquenes.

El sismo fue percibido desde las regiones de Antofagasta a Los Lagos.

De acuerdo con datos preliminares, entre las víctimas se cuentan cuatro fallecidos en Valparaíso, 13 en la Región Metropolitana, 12 en O’Higgins, 34 en Maule, 10 en Bío Bío y cinco en Araucania.

Según datos de radios chilenas, se observan variaciones en el nivel del mar en las costas chilenas, y en la Isla de Juan Fernandez una ola de gran tamaño ingresó al sector afectando un colegio, el municipio, la plaza y el gimnasio.

La presidenta Michelle Bachelet recorrió por aire las regiones VII y VIII, mientras que otros seis helicópteros con ministros del Estado y personal técnico sobrevuela el resto del territorio afectado.

La Onemi informó que la Región Metropolitana se han registrado diversas situaciones de emergencia, entre éstas un incendio en una bodega de productos químicos en la zona de Quilicura y otro siniestro en la empresa química en Colina.

Se registraron también daños en la infraestructura vial, como en los puentes de Lo Barnechea, Renca, Lampa, los pasos superiores Lop Echevers y Miraflores en la autopista Vespucio Norte, y el sector Quilicura.

En la Región de O'Higgins hay daños estructurales en la Ruta 5 de San Francisco de Mostazal por un socavón, y el tránsito quedó suspendido en el paso superior de Codigua-Pelequen.

En el Maule, los hospitales de Hualañé y Nicanten tienen daños estructurales pero están operativos. Los hospitales de Parral y Talca fueron evacuados.

En la Región del Bío Bío se reportó el colapso del Puente Llacolén que conecta Concepción y San Pedro de la Paz, y en la zona de la Araucania se registraron daños en viviendas en distintos puntos de la zona.

El hospital de Temuco registró daños menores, aunque se evacuaron de manera preventiva las instalaciones del cuarto piso.

En la Región de los Ríos, el puente Pichoy que conecta ruta 5 con Valdivia, se encuentra operativo solamente para vehículos menores, por situación de desnivel.

En el puerto sureño de Valdivia, los muelles Las Mulatas y Shuser presentan daños estructurales, al igual que la pasarela peatonal en las comunas de Los Lagos y Paillaco.

Eluniversal.com.mx