Updates:

3rd March 2010 AM: We have received more news from our team in Chile in the last 24 hours.

Praise the Lord the Concepcion team are all safe and well, and the shop has not suffered significant damage.  However, food is very scarce and electricity and water supplies are cut off.  There is significant vandalism in the streets as people try to find basic supplies.  Our Concepcion bookshop manager, Edgardo Roldan, reports that neighbours are organizing themselves to protect against physical attack. 

Elsewhere, the manager in Valparaiso, Edmundo, is unable to return to his seventh floor apartment as the building is unsafe and in Santiago one wall of our warehouse has collapsed into a neighbour’s property.

Please continue to pray:

1. For protection for our bookshops against vandalism
2. For basic supplies to be restored, and for peace in the streets
3. For the Chilean government as they manage this huge crisis

2nd March 2010 AM: Praise God! Just heard that our people in Concepcion, Chile, are all alive! I don't know about their homes or the bookstore there, as the downtown area is impassable. Some of the staff in different cities have lost their homes, and our main warehouse in Santiago has one wall down. Thanks for praying for them and please keep it up as the situation is pretty bad.

1st March 2010 PM: Some good news from Chile: We have heard from our team in Talca and they are okay. Praise God! The city is in chaos and many buildings are down. We still have no news from our team in Concepcion - please pray for our staff there: Edgardo Roldan (Manager), Héctor Flores, Luis Pena, and Christian Yanez. Also, please pray for quick restoration of basic services throughout the country.

1st March 2010 AM: We still have not heard from our coworkers in CLC Concepcion, Chile. Pretty devasting scene there from what we hear. Travel is not too safe, so pray for wisdom for some of our team there that are evaluating a trip in to the most affected zone to check on our colleagues.

Dear all:

As you should know yesterday (28/02/10) in the morning Chile was struck by one of the biggest earthquakes in recorded history rocked this country, killing more than 700 people while leaving untold numbers missing and 2 million displaced, wounded or otherwise affected.

The 8.8 quake delivered 50 times more energy than the Haiti's earthquake a month ago, thankfully destruction wasn't as much as in Haiti because Chile has very strict building codes. Anyway the capital Santiago and two cities, Concepción and Talca where very  damaged.

I heard today from our National Director Isaac Zuniga, he and his family are fine, and our teams in Santiago, Antofagasta, Vina del Mar, Temuco y Valparaiso are fine, so far there are not mayor damages or personal losses reported between in the CLC family.  But they are really concerned about our people in Concepción and Talca, were we have not communication or news from. Isaac will wait for news until tonight,  if they have not contact he will try to travel to the area, which could also be a challenge due the destruction in roads and collapsed bridges.

While I'm written this, I got a new e-mail from Isaac, saying that our people in Talca are fine, they reported few damages in the store, but the town is a chaos, with closed streets and buildings fell down. According with a local news paper "The city looks like it was hit by a missile".

Pray requests from Isaac:

• For a quick restore of the basic services (water, electricity) and communications.
  
• For the population that they can wait patiently until the help arrives. The army will take control of two provinces to avoid violence and chaos.
• For wisdom to know what our priorities should be for the stores.

Because all these, CLC Chile decided postponed their annual conference which was planned to be held on March 14th.

Pray for our staff in Concepcion;

• Edgardo Roldan (Manager)
• Héctor Flores
• Luis Pena
• Christian Yanez

Pray for our staff in Talca;

• William Verdejo (Manager)
• Adriana Verdejo

CLC Chile needs our support, keep them in our prayers, we'll keep you inform.

Gerardo Scalante
leader of the Venezuela field & Area Co-ordinator for The Americas, Field Leader