Hi All,

What could be really bad, isn't. With a depth of 69 miles there are no reports of damages or casualties...Thank Goodness....Petra

From USA Today on-line:

Powerful earthquake rattles northern Chile
SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — A powerful earthquake rattled northern Chile Monday causing alarm in some desert towns but there were no immediate reports on victims or major damage.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the preliminary magnitude was 7.9, while Chile's Emergency Bureau said it registered at 5.6. There was no immediate explanation for the discrepancy. The quake struck at 6:54 p.m.

Deputy Interior Minister Jorge Correar said the epicenter was located in an unpopulated area in the Andes mountains near the Bolivian border, about 940 miles north of Santiago, the capital.

Power supply and communications were interrupted in the port cities of Iquique, 1,120 miles, north of here, and Arica, in the border with Peru.

It was also felt in other cities in the area, including Calama, next to Chuquicamata, the world's largest open pit copper mine.