By MATT THACKER
JEFFERSONVILLE — After more than a day of worrying, Jeffersonville resident Miguel Zanartu finally heard good news Sunday morning. His family had survived one of the largest earthquakes ever recorded.
Zanartu, 37, first learned about the earthquake, which registered an 8.8 on the Richter Scale, when he awoke Saturday morning and turned on his television to watch “Good Morning America.”
“ABC was saying this was worse than [the Jan. 12 earthquake in] Haiti. I was thinking of all the images of Haiti, and they’re saying this was worse,” Zanartu said.
His father, grandmother and dozens of other relatives live in the South American country.
As the destruction was reported and the death tolls continued to rise through the day, Zanartu assumed the worst.
“Saturday was a bad day for me. I told my wife to be prepared to go to Chile for funerals,” he said.
Zanartu spent most of the day Saturday attempting to reach his family by telephone without success. He also was unable to reach the state department.
Zanartu then posted a message on Facebook asking for any information he could find about the status of his relatives. By Saturday night, he started receiving messages from family members telling him they were OK. He received an e-mail from his father Sunday. He now knows that all of his family survived, and most of their residences had only minor damage.
They know they are among the lucky ones. The death toll has surpassed 700, according to media reports.
Zanartu’s father lives on the 14th floor of a building in the capital of Santiago and was there when the earthquake started at about 3:30 a.m. His uncle, who lives on the fourth floor of a building on the opposite side of the city, described the chaotic scene.
“The building started shaking violently,” Zanartu said. “They were basically scared for their lives. There was no electricity, so they were in the dark. They couldn’t leave the building.”
Zanartu said his uncle described the ground making a loud rumbling noise, adding that it was the scariest two minutes of his life. His uncle said his wife started praying as their daughter cried uncontrollably. Shortly after the earthquake ended, the streets were flooded with people screaming and crying.
Zanartu recommends that anyone else trying to reach family or friends in Chile posts a message on Facebook. Without the Internet, he likely would still be wondering if his family survived.
“I was really surprised. I wasn’t expecting to hear from them,” he said.
Zanartu, whose mother is American and father is Chilean, moved to the United States in 1989. He said he has always been impressed by American generosity and has, along with his Mexican-American wife, donated to Hurricane Katrina and Haiti relief efforts.
While Zanartu says it is important not to forget about Haiti, he anticipates the giving will extend to his native country as well.
“It is our obligations as human beings to be there for everybody. We need to help our neighbors, and this is what the U.S. is all about,” Zanartu said. “I love this country, and I have no doubt the people here will pour their hearts out.”
He said his family indicated that the best way to help is to make a donation to the Red Cross.
