INDONESIANS IN CHILE SAFE FROM EARTHQUAKE: MINISTRY

Jakarta, Feb 28 (ANTARA) - All Indonesian citizens staying in Chile are safe from the powerful earthquake which struck the country on Saturday, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said here on Sunday.

Faizasyah said that based on a report by the Indonesian representative office in Chile at 6 am, a total of 181 Indonesians staying in Chile were all safe and in good conditions.

"We received information at 6 am this morning that there are 181 Indonesian citizens in Chile and they are all safe and in good conditions. None suffered from significant injuries," the ministry spokesman said.

He said that the 181 Indonesians in general were employees of the Indonesian embassy and their relatives who stayed in Chilean capital Santiago, Twenty Indonesian missionaries were also said to be safe.

Faizasyah said he was still facing problems with communicating with Chilean side as a result of the earthquake.

"I am still unable to make further confirmation on their conditions because we still have difficulties in communicating. We have tried to communicate since last night but not until this morning could we have the news," he said.

A powerful earthquake measuring 8.8 on the Richter scale shook Chile at 1.34 pm Western Indonesia Time (WIB) on Saturday.

Reuters quoted the Chilean interior minister as saying on Sunday that at least 214 people had been killed in a powerful earthquake that struck Chile on Saturday.

The tremor rocked Chile at 3:34 a.m. local time (0734 GMT) Saturday, knocking down homes and hospitals, and triggering a tsunami that rolled menacingly across the Pacific.

The epicenter was only 115 km from Conception, a city with a population of 670,000.

A tsunami as high as 3 meters could hit Japan's Pacific coasts following a powerful earthquake that struck Chile Saturday, the Japan Meteorological Agency said Sunday.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) said the epicenter of the quake was at 35.826 degrees southern latitude and 72.669 degrees eastern longitude, or about 317 km northwest of Chilean capital Santiago.