Chile remembers earthquake victims as three-day mourning begins
Flags fly at half mast across Chile as country begins three days of national mourning for earthquake which killed hundreds
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By Anisa Kadri. |  |
Sunday, 07, Mar 2010 10:45
By Matthew Champion
Flags will fly at half mast across Chile today as the nation begins three days of national mourning for those killed by last week's devastating earthquake.
The 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of the country's Maule region around 115km (71 miles) north-east of Chile's second city Concepcion, destroying half a million homes and triggering a tsunami and several aftershocks.
Officials have struggled to give an accurate death-toll, with the current figure standing at 452 after a previous total was found to have included many people designated as missing rather than dead.
Visiting Concepcion on Saturday, UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon said: "The Chilean government is asking for international aid and we will give it.
"Your people were generous enough to rush to Haiti when it was hit, now it is the moment for the international community to stand with the Chilean people.
"I can feel all this, for your loss, for your struggle."