01 March 2010

Secretary Clinton Delivering Communications Equipment to Chile

Secretary Clinton says Chilean officials will be assessing ways the United States can help with relief efforts.

By Stephen Kaufman
Staff Writer

Washington — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is bringing communications equipment, including satellite phones, to Chile to help the country recover from a massive earthquake that struck February 27, and she said U.S. search-and-rescue teams are on stand-by in case they are needed and more technical assistance is on the way.

In remarks with Uruguayan President-elect José Mujica in Montevideo March 1, Clinton’s first stop on a five-day visit to South America, the secretary said she will meet with Chile’s president, Michelle Bachelet, and President-elect Sebastian Piñera in Santiago March 2 to “work with the government and people of Chile in solidarity in recovery from this earthquake.”

Clinton’s visit to Chile had been scheduled before the 8.8-magnitude quake. According to press reports, the death toll stands at more than 700 as of March 1, and is expected to rise.

Clinton said both she and President Obama had spoken to Bachelet shortly after the earthquake occurred to express condolences and offer assistance. The secretary said U.S. search-and-rescue teams and other potential assets were put on stand-by.

“They have asked for communications equipment, some of which I am bringing on our plane. Other technical equipment will be flown there in addition. But one of the reasons why they have asked me to continue my trip is to assess whatever else they might need and immediately to begin the process of providing it,” Clinton said.

Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs P.J. Crowley told reporters in Washington March 1 that Clinton will be bringing satellite phones and imagery that may help Chilean authorities assess the damage and determine how best to respond to it. Along with communications support, he said, the Chilean government has requested U.S. assistance in providing a field hospital and water-purification systems.

“We are mobilizing those capabilities as we speak, and we’ll be moving those down to Chile as quickly as possible,” Crowley said. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is determining whether the assistance would best be obtained from a private source or military source.

The field hospital is being tailored “to make sure that it is to address the injuries that we think the Chilean people have suffered, and that it would be best for those medical professionals … to be able to address,” Crowley said.

While the earthquake in Chile was much stronger than the January 12 quake in Haiti, which measured 7.0, press reports have said the smaller death toll and level of destruction in Chile can be explained by the epicenter’s location under the sea floor and away from major population centers, as well as Chile’s own earthquake preparations and resources.

In 1960, Chile endured a 9.5-magnitude quake that killed 2,000 people. Crowley said that and other experiences have helped Chileans prepare for and respond to the February 27 disaster.

“Their building standards were strengthened over the past decades, and so … I think you have a population that clearly was very well prepared, which I think accounts for the relatively low … death toll at this point,” Crowley said.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) estimated February 28 that 500,000 homes, particularly adobe structures used by indigenous people, were severely damaged. In addition to the deaths caused by the quake itself, PAHO said the tsunami it triggered is estimated to have killed hundreds who were living in coastal cities such as Concepción and Constitución.

Several private U.S. and international relief organizations are sending personnel and relief assistance to Chile. Many are also setting up text-message donation services, similar to those established to help Haiti that have raised more than $40 million from private donors.