EU pledges three million euros to quake-stricken Chile

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said in a statement he was "deeply shocked at the extent of the devastation" in Chile as he announced the European Union's intention to do whatever it took to help.

"As a first step, the European Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO) of the Commission stands ready to launch a fast-track humanitarian funding decision for 3 million euros to relieve suffering and meet the immediate needs," the statement said.

The magnitude 8.8 quake struck in the early hours of Saturday, February 27, while most Chileans were asleep. Hundreds of buildings were destroyed in the city of Concepcion and damage was also reported in the capital, Santiago. Over 300 people are currently believed to have been killed.

International aid charities said they were dispatching experts to Chile but predicted that the devastation would be far lower than in Haiti, where a January 12 quake killed 200,000 people.

Bildunterschrift: The quake dealt a serious blow to Chile's infrastructure
Spain coordinates EU contribution

Spain, which holds the rotating six-month presidency of the EU, offered to help coordinate relief efforts for quake-hit Chile.

The Spanish government also called a meeting on Sunday of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation.

"Spain, is prepared to offer, as in the case of Haiti, all its available capabilities in the region to provide a coordinated response to this new disaster that has rocked a friendly and brother country," the Madrid government said in a statement.

EU leaders unify in sympathy

Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Several states around the Pacific are on tsunami warning
Other EU leaders joined Spain in offering sympathy and aid to the South American state.

"The people of Chile are in agony today but Britain stands ready to help," said British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. "We will do whatever we can."

President Nicolas Sarkozy expressed his "deep emotion" at the tragedy, while French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Paris was "in consultation with its European Union partners, and is ready to respond to the Chilean demands for assistance."

EU Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva has activated the group's crisis monitoring unit and told its aid experts "to undertake urgent needs assessments if required."

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said Germany would be sending a relief team from the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) to the region. He added that there was no news on whether any Germans had been killed or injured by the earthquake.

Source:dw-world.de/