Earthquake Update!

Well the title of my blog says it all. This trip has been one crazy adventure after another and last night was no different. A little after 3:30 this morning there was a huge earthquake, as you may have heard. I was half awake at the time and figured it was just like any other little earthquake that we've been having. I stayed in bed because I figured it'd be over in a few seconds. When it didn't stop and in fact got worse, I got up and went to the doorway. My family (mom, dad, sister, and cousin) were very close all holding on to each other. I could hear plates and cups crashing and breaking while they fell from the cupboards. My dad said it lasted around 90 seconds, but added that it felt like a year. Once it stopped, you could tell that the house was still swaying. I'm really thankful that I'm only on the 4th floor! We got on shoes and walked downstairs outside. We only stayed down there for a few minutes and then cautiously returned to the 4th floor. The power, gas, internet, and phone lines were down, so we got some candles and quickly surveyed the damage. The earthquake was strong enough to knock down some of the TVs even though I didn't hear them fall. My family kept trying their cells to get a hold of family members. I didn't really know what to do so eventually, around 6 something, I just tried to get some sleep. My mom and dad recommended that I move my bed away from the window (the window of death) and that I sleep with the door slightly ajar. Almost as soon as I got into bed, I heard my Chilean cell phone ring. Taylor called! He wanted to check in and make sure I was ok. I think we're the only two students with Chilean cell phones and the landlines weren't working so we couldn't really get a hold of anyone else last night. (Thanks, bro!) Needless to say, I didn't sleep too well last night. There have been a bunch of aftershocks that vary on the Richter scale, but I know that some were even around a 6. In the morning the power still wasn't working, but at least the sun was up and gave us some light. I could see the cracks in the walls and some more of the damage that the earthquake did. The railing on the porch doesn't seem very sturdy anymore, so I will be even more careful when I go out there. Even now (more than 12 hours after "the big one") there are still some pretty strong aftershocks. My mom and sister are both pretty freaked out. When I see the pictures from the epicenter and hear the death toll and how it's still rising, it's shocking. I still can't really believe that all this has happened. It's really weird to think that (1) we're the first group from our school to go, (2) this is the biggest earthquake they've had in 10+ years, and (3) we've only been here for a little over a month! I'm very thankful that it happened when it did though because I think it could have been a lot worse if it happened during the day time, or if any of our group had been home alone. I'm thankful God has kept us safe! Please continue to pray for us, for Chile, and for the potential for tsunamis!

I'll try to keep you guys updated! Thanks for your support!

PS: Ron, our professor, has contacted all of the students and we're all safe!!!

PPS: Oh just wanted to say to those who are potential Santiago study abroad students: Contact me with any questions or concerns! ;)

Outside sources: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/us2010tfan.php

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/lt_chile_earthquake

Apparently this quake is tied for the 7th strongest in the world...goodie.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100227/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_chile_earthquake
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100227/ts_nm/us_quake_chile