Chile: The Shakes Again

The Andes are young and violent mountains, not yet fully grown or pacified by time. Still-active volcanoes pock the spiny range running the length of western South America. Avalanches rumble down constantly from the 20,000-ft. peaks. And beneath the earth's jagged crust, fantastic forces grind and churn, producing violent earthquakes—most often in Chile. Of the thousands of big and little tremors recorded around the world each year, about 15% occur in Chile. One quake in 1906 took 3,000 lives. Another in 1939 left 30,000 dead. Five years ago, still another killed 5,000 people. Last week Chile had the shakes...

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