page_title: 2010 Pichilemu earthquake
section_title: Damage and casualties
hierarchical_section_title: 2010 Pichilemu earthquake / Damage and casualties
caption_attribution_description: English: Demolition process of Pichilemu's post office in July 3, 2010
context_page_description: The 2010 Pichilemu earthquake, also known as the Libertador O'Higgins earthquake, was a 6.9 MW intraplate earthquake that struck Chile's O'Higgins Region on 11 March 2010. The earthquake was centred 15 kilometres northwest of the city of Pichilemu.
  The earthquake was caused by increased regional stress arising from an earthquake on 27 February, centered offshore Maule Region, which was felt throughout central Chile. The 11 March earthquake was at first thought to be an aftershock from the 27 February event, but University of Chile seismologist Jaime Campos identified it as an independent earthquake. The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center pointed out the possibility of local tsunamis within 100 kilometres of the epicentre, although small, but violent waves were seen in the Pichilemu and Bucalemu area. One person was reported dead. At least eleven aftershocks immediately followed, causing panic throughout coastal towns between the Coquimbo and Los Lagos regions.
  The earthquake was especially destructive in the epicentre town, Pichilemu, capital of Cardenal Caro Province.
context_section_description: At Pichilemu, the epicentre town, the earthquake destroyed the balustres surrounding Agustín Ross Park, damaged severely the recently re-inaugurated Agustín Ross Cultural Centre, and the Espinillo, and Rodeillo villages. The earthquake was accompanied by "great noise", according to witnesses from the Pichilemu villages of
  Cardonal de Panilonco and La Aguada; most of the already damaged buildings in La Aguada fell down, including the local church. The road to Cardonal de Panilonco was damaged, and many houses built with adobe did not resist the shaking.
  Outside Pichilemu, in Rancagua, local mayor Eduardo Soto reported severe damage to homes in the town. The Santa Julia highway overpass located between Rancagua and Graneros collapsed, and part of the Pan-American highway was damaged. A power outage affected Pichilemu for two days, beginning right after the earthquake struck, and there were partial power outages in Mostazal, San Fernando and Peumo. In Santiago, "windows rattled, buildings trembled and cellphone service failed", according to a The New York Times article. The old Basílica del Salvador in Santiago, which was damaged during the 1985 Algarrobo earthquake and was never repaired, suffered additional damage. In Nilahue Barahona, a village near the town of Pumanque, electric cables fell to the ground during the earthquake, causing a fire that burned 65 hectares (160 acres) of a pine, eucalyptus and grassland forest. The earthquake was also reported to have been felt in Mendoza, Bariloche, Córdoba, San Rafael, Buenos Aires, Montevideo, and Asunción.
  One person died of a heart attack during the earthquake in Talca, Maule Region. A United States Geological Survey summary of the earthquake reported damage at Rancagua, 177 kilometers northeast of Pichilemu.  Relief efforts for the 27 February earthquake stalled for about six hours because of the constant aftershocks.
  According to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Geophysical Data Center, the damage provoked by the earthquake and its accompanying small tsunami was "limited", adding that "a rough estimate of the dollar amount of damage" was "roughly corresponding to less than one million".
caption: The Pichilemu post-office building was severely damaged by the February and March earthquakes.
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