Author: Eduardo Avila

The government of the Dominican Republic announced that it will construct a university in neighboring Haiti for 10,000 students, writes Duarte 101 [es].

Luis Figueroa of the blog Carpe Diem [es] writes about the amount of bureaucracy involved to approve adoptions in Guatemala.

Honduran blogger “El Buscador” writes about the murdered journalist David Meza [es], and how he had received death threats for reporting on narcotrafficking. Meza is the 2nd Honduran journalist to be killed in 2010.

Sebastian Chaskel of the Americas Quarterly Blog provides his thoughts on how Colombians will vote in the March 13th legislative elections.

Nicaraguan musician Salvador Cardenal passed away on March 8, 2010 after a lengthy illness. His official blog [es] is collecting memories of his life in music, as well as receiving messages from his fans.

The site Terremoto 2010 [es] invites readers to submit their testimonials when and after the earthquake hit Chile.

The poor health of Nicaraguan musician Salvador Cardenal [es] was on the mind of Central American blogger Julia Ardón, who is a fan of his voice and his lyrics.

Andrés Azócar of the blog Hijo del Medio [es] writes about some of the criticisms aimed at Chilean television for its post-earthquake coverage. He supports some of that criticism including its sensationalist nature, for example accompanying shots of looting with ‘terror music.”

Jorge Barahona writes about the digital communication failure by the Chilean government [es] after the earthquake, who did not make best use of the tools available. However, he praised channels like Twitter and his 3G connection that allowed him to access information.

“Chaotic continues to the situation that province of Curicó faces,” writes Luis Alberto Cabello of the blog Vivimos la Noticia [es] written from the Chilean province that was one of the hardest hit. He also adds photos of the scenes from the streets.

The citizen newspaper Maulee [es] based in Maule, the epicenter region of the Chilean earthquake provides updates on how the region was affected, including fatalities, road conditions, and recommendations from authorities.

Many buildings around Chile were damaged by the earthquake. David Basulto of the architecture blog Plataforma Arquitectura [es] collects news and photos of these structures.

Cathy Dean, a U.S. citizen living in Santiago, Chile, provides her account on her blog of the recent earthquake the hit on February 27, 2010.

Another Chilean island territory, the Juan Fernández Islands located closer to the Chilean coast at a distance of 667 km, was not spared from the effects of the waves caused by the powerful earthquake. Due to their closer proximity, there are confirmed reports of destruction and deaths caused by a tsunami. Many are reporting that residents were not warned with ample enough time and as a result were unable to evacuate to higher ground.

Many Twitter users who had friends and family on the islands were once again desperately searching for information on Twitter [es] for their whereabouts. Once some of them were able to get in contact with the person they were looking for, they shared their information on Twitter.

The brother of Pedro Huichalaf (@Huichalaf) had been on the island with his girlfriend. Huichalaf was finally able to get in touch [es] with him after many uncertain moments [es]:

me comuniqué con mi hermano que está en Isla de Juan Fernández . Dijo que tsunami fue avisado muy tarde

Mi hermano q está en Isla Juan Fernández dijo q alarma de tsunami fue tocada cuando ola se acercaba

He also shared the phone number where individuals could call to get in touch with family and friends using the phone at the Civil Aeronautic station on the island, where they took turns to receive and make phone calls [es].

When word did get out about the names of the confirmed dead, many Twitter users like Mauricio Almazan (@mauro009) acknowledged the passing of a friend who was studying on the island [es], as did Francisca Ulloa (@franuyeah) who also lost a friend [es], who was working as a marine biologist on one of the islands. Hector Zamora (@melonzamora) lost a relative [es]:

la ola de juan fernandez se llevo a mi primo 🙁 y aparecieron alrrededor de 20 cuerpo no identificados

Zamora also had a list of those confirmed dead [es], as many other Twitter users had been asking him for information [es]:

tengo una lista de 7 muertos y varios desaparecidos pero no entiendo bien la letra de mi mama que esta llorando por mi primo

However, his sadness turned nearly 15 hours later, when he received the news that they found his cousin alive [es]. The waves had carried him to other side of the island, and which was very good news for his family after the initial news that he had passed away.

When word got out about the tsunami and the damage and death caused by the waves, many like Felipe Parra (@Kaosrq) were left asking on Twitter [es], “Anybody know why the people of Juan Fernández and Talcahuano (another affected area) were unable to be warned?” The National Office of Emergency (ONEMI) placed the blame on the Chilean Navy [es], who in turn, said that it was not part of their responsibilities to provide warnings. The Navy said it only transmits information about sea levels. However ONEMI said that some of the Naval instruments had failed that day and provided faulty data [es].

Regardless as who is to blame, many Chileans on the mainland lament the loss of life and that they were unable to be warned in time. Juan Pablo Mena (@Somosmarketing) writes:

no me explico como los hab de Juan Fernandez se sienten chilenos, si no fuimos capaces de alertarlos del riesgo de maremoto

Easter Island is well-known for its Polynesian monumental statues that draw tourists from around the globe. This Chilean territory, also known by its native name of Rapa Nui, lies 3500 km west of the South American continent and has a permanent population of close to 5,000. During the aftermath of the February 27 earthquake, there was also great concern for local residents and visiting tourists because of the tsunami warning.

Mexican José Alberto Castro (@elgueromex) was visiting Easter Island when the earthquake struck and when the tsunami warning was issued. He used Twitter to access information on what has happening back on the mainland and to inform friends about the current situation.

Parece ser que nos van a evacuar están esperando olas muy grandes hay les aviso

Residents and tourists were ordered to evacuate coastal areas and were moved to higher ground. When the tsunami warning had expired without any serious damage, he took this photograph of the full moon over the island and writes, “today, after so much uncertainty, Rapa Nui gives us this moon.”

The brother of José Luis Tapia (@cuatrodjspro) was on Easter Island when the earthquake hit. Tapia opened his Twitter account during the earthquake repercussions to exchange information regarding the situation on Easter Island. After phoning his brother, he shared the information that he gathered:

acabo de hablar cn mi hermano en isla de pascua y esta todo normal, segun ellos no habra vuelos en los proximos 5 dias

en isla de pascua hubo un tsunami de caracter leve en el sector de tongariki alrededor de las 9 de la mañana ningun daño ni heridos

Alejandro Tucki (@JanoTC) also opened a Twitter account post-earthquake. He took the following photo on Easter Island that shows a stone wall that was damaged by the waves in an unpopulated area:

Photo of damaged stone wall on Easter Island by Alejandro Tucki

Another Chilean who was on the island when the tsunami warning was announced, Daniel Sovino (@dsavino) also writes that everything is fine, but not without alarm:

todo bien por aca, aparte del susto de despertar con evacuacion de tsunami, la sacamos mas barata que el continente….

Fifty years ago, the strongest earthquake ever recorded in history rocked the city of Valdivia, Chile. On May 22, 1960, the 9.5 magnitude earthquake struck the epicenter near the city of Cañete. However, Valdivia was the hardest hit locality with nearly 40% of its building destroyed and leaving close to 20,000 homeless.

Many current users of citizen media are too young to have experienced the 1960 quake, but some like Mauro Barrientos (@maurobarrientos) talked with someone who was there fifty years ago:

Mi awela dijo este terremoto ni se compara al del terremoto de valdivia en 1960

However, the legacy that the earthquake has had on Chile's history was on the minds of many around the country. Yondaime Andres (@EomerElessar) writes:

a toodos se les aparece el fantasma del 60 por eso el temor

From the city of Valdivia, Betsabé Sandoval (@_Nahra) has been uploading various vintage photos at Twitpic of the destruction from the 1960 earthquake, including this photo of the damage to the Valdivia Cathedral. In total, she has uploaded 10 different photographs.

Photo of Valdivia post-quake uploaded by _Nahra

There are many Twitter users who currently live in the city of Valdivia. Throughout the day, they have been reacting to the developments of the 2010 earthquake and how their fellow residents were affected. The Twitter user @tapeks writes about the current mood of the city:

Se ve el temor en la gente, todos andan intranquilos y las calles se ven desoladas, se ve tan raro #Valdivia

With the approach of nightfall on the first night after the earthquake, Evelyn Arriagada (@evelynarriaga) and Daniela Contreras (@dcontrerasl) both remark how things are a little calmer, but everyone is heading to bed with a little bit of fear.

Nevertheless, not only is the damage caused by the 1960 earthquake on the minds of many, but also the reaction by the Chilean people 50 years ago. Pancho Ballesteros (@Pancho_B) writes:

Si hace 50 años nuestra patria se puso de pie despues de lo de Valdivia, hoy es el momento de volver a hacerlo…

At 3:34 a.m. local time, an earthquake with a magnitude of 8.8 struck off the coast of the Maule region in Chile. The earthquake was felt in the capital city of Santiago located 325km from the epicenter. Extensive damage has been reported throughout the country, and the number of casualties continues to go up. Throughout the day, aftershocks have also been felt in the region.

A blog Terremoto Chile [es] (Earthquake Chile) was quickly created by Francisco soon after the earthquake hit. In addition to posting recommendations on what citizens should do following the earthquake [es], he has been collecting and linking to various Twitpic pictures.

Photo of damage to Nuestra Señora de la Divina Providencia Church in Santiago. Taken by Julio Costa Zambelli and used under a Creative Commons license.

Near the epicenter, Robinson Esparza of the citizen newspaper El aMaule [es], part of the Diarios Ciudadanos [es] network has been updating a post with the latest regional and national news [es]. Many comments have been worrying about family members in areas outside the capital, and this lack of communication has continued to be an issue for relatives trying to contact family and friends in places where electricity and phone lines have been affected. Ign. Rodríguez de R. (@micronauta) writes about this frustration:

tratando horas d comunicarme con familia en Valparaíso, la red fija telefónica VTR es desastrosa, no se les debería permitir dar servicio :@

Those who have been posting on the Terremoto Chile blog have also created a Twitter account called Ayuda Chile [es] (Help Chile) in which information from other Twitter users who are looking for family members are collected and re-tweeted. Some Twitter users such as Pablo González Carcey have also offered to call relatives [es] for those such as Daniela Alvarado who was unable to reach her brother in Chile. He follows up:

@DaniAlvaradoA hice los llamados y tu familia esta bien! Abrazos

After daybreak, more images of the damage soon appearing online. Claudio Olivares went on a walking tour of Santiago to survey the damage and uploaded the photos on Owly, as did Costanza Campos, who took some photos of the damage to some of Santiago's churches.

YouTube user Franciso Vivallo Sainz took the following video of the collapse of a platform in the Bilbao Towers in Las Condes neighborhood of Santiago:

There are already tsunami warnings issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center for locations bordering the Pacific Ocean.

Daniel Hernandez of the blog Intersections critiques the media coverage of Mexico's “Narco War” and provides examples of some recent cases.

Kara Andrade of New Maya writes about her recent trip into Guatemala's capital city, and writes “I grew up with a fear of Guatemala City as this monolith of chaos that swallowed up people…” However, at the end of the day, she came away with a different view of the city.

Honduran singer-songwriter and blogger Guillermo Anderson is a big believer in how local tourism can help his country. He writes in a recent post called “There's This Little Hotel,” in his blog and re-published with permission that “to be able to create a tourism of this flavor is to believe in the essence and beauty of our country. It is about believing that all communities can benefit. It is about believing and having confidence that we in Honduras have more than enough to succeed without having to leave for foreign lands to seek out our futures.”

Photo by Jose Luis Duron and used under a Creative Commons license.

Anderson also has friends in the tourism industry in his country. However, they do not work for the large chains, but instead have worked hard to build their small businesses. Here, Anderson describes their work:

Contestan el teléfono llevan los libros y después de una llamada, manejan el Van y dejan al cuidado de la oficinita a su compañera. Salen a atender sus turistas y hablan tres idiomas, conocen de historia, cultura y a veces el nombre y propiedad de cada planta en el camino. Cargan en sus espaldas cayacs, grandes balsas inflables, equipos de Canopy, de escalar, hieleras con frutas para sus clientes y aún así logran mantener una sonrisa y amabilidad para los turistas fascinados con nuestra flora y fauna y la belleza natural que nos rodea.

He adds more description about their work of building the tourism industry in Honduras:

Tengo amigas que con grandes esfuerzos han logrado convertir una casita en un colorido rincón o pueblo de mi país en los hotelitos y pensiones más acogedores del mundo. Amigos que que como magos, crean con piedras, bejucos, troncos y flores y con gran gusto y amor las decoraciones más creativas. La rueda de una carreta olvidada se convierte en una hermosa mesa para degustar el aromático café que una Sra. del pueblo sabe tostar, un viejo caracol se convierte en un tesoro y un cayuco que el mar dejó olvidado en la arena, en el macetero de flores tropicales más hermoso que ojos jamás han visto.

However, Anderson notes that the economic crisis has had a drastic effect on his friends in the tourism industry. Due to the lack of customers, many of these hotels have had to close. Yet, some of them have remained opened due to the sacrifices made by their owners. He speaks directly to Honduran readers:

Si este verano hay hondureños que a pesar de la crisis están pensando hacer turismo aunque de manera modesta, quiero que piensen en las pequeñas operaciones y en estos lugares y que además de acogedores son lugares que creen en nuestro potencial , que creen en nuestra gente , en nuestra cultura y son pequeños nidos de esperanza.

Anderson summarizes about the role that Hondurans can take to ensure that places like the ones described above remain open and able to showcase the beauty of the entire country:

Nosotros debemos ser los promotores más entusiastas de nuestro país. Sirva este medio para sugerir lugares y promover ese “hotelito “que conocemos en un hermoso rinconcito de Honduras donde nos atendieron bien y comimos un plato nacional que no habíamos probado antes. Esa pequeña agencia donde un tipo amable nos llevó a conocer una hermosa caída de agua y aprendimos sobre plantas y animales o donde vimos una celebración tradicional que nos hizo apreciar mas nuestra cultura ; Visitar y apoyarlos será un gesto de amor a un país que hoy tanto lo necesita.