I was sleeping and suddenly I woke up around 6 in the morning and everything was shaking. Honestly, I thought that I was hallucinating. My bed, night table, doors, and windows were all shaking for good 40 seconds. When it stopped, I felt the whole building moving left and right. I live in the third floor of an 18-floor apartment building, so that is why I felt the construction moving.
At the first moment, I was really shocked because there is nothing I could do. The feeling of helplessness is just awful. When it happen I was very sleepy, so I was not fully realizing what just happened, but when I woke up, I googled: “Earthquake Santiago, Chile.” The epicenter of the earthquake that I experienced was 150 miles away, far from me and Santiago. It was not devastating, which I really hope that will not happen, but it had force of 4.4, so we still could feel the shaking.
As, we were told in the emergency meeting, construction business is extremely expensive in Santiago because the buildings have to be prepared for earthquakes, so earthquakes are usually not a life-threatening thing in Chile. Actually, Chile had this year (2016) already 1,070 Earthquakes. The most dangerous place to be during Earthquake in Chile is the cost because of the tsunami, which is where most people die from earthquakes. In 2010, Santiago got hit with earthquake of 8.3 and 14 people died. Only 1 of them died in the Santiago in very unfortunate death and rest of them died on the cost.
So what to do during earthquake? It is called Triangle of Life.
The chances of experiencing another earthquake during my stay in Santiago are high, so there there is only way to deal with it. Face it and be prepared when it is going to happen because nobody knows when next earthquake is going to happen.
It is called a Triangle of Life and here is what one does:
The Triangle of Life is a protection if one is in the building, but if one is on the streets then s/he musts stay away from any glass windows. If one on the coast, run to the hill.
