Carolyn Vroom and I are now heading into our third week here as part of the Cat (catastrophic loss) team. We recently had an opportunity to travel to the communities of Santa Cruz and Pichilemu.
Santa Cruz is a small village nestled in the Colchagua Valley, lush with vineyards, and was unfortunately within the epicentre of the February 27th earthquake.
The piles of rubble where homes once stood made for quite a haunting site.
RSA insures the resort hotel and casino in Santa Cruz. While it had enjoyed a robust business before the earthquake, it now stands eerily empty having sustained heavy structural damage. However, the resolve of the Chilean people to look beyond the rubble and get back to business is remarkable and inspirational!
Pichilemu is a picturesque coastal town and home to Chile´s infamous waves making it a surfer`s paradise. Pichilemu not only experienced the earthquake but suffered tremendous damage as a result of the tsunami that followed. But again, against all odds the Chilean people have managed to get on with rebuilding their lives.
Mike Stewart parachuted in on the weekend, just in time to experience our second tremor registering 5.8. For those of you commuting by streetcar, as I do, a 5.8 is similar to the rattle experienced while riding the trolley along the tracks. With Mike now here, our first Canadian contingent is complete!
Stand by for more news next week from your down-under reporter Carolyn Vroom.
- Linda Friesen
Hi Linda - you are absolutely the right person for this assignment. You are an amazing ambassador on behalf of RSA. I am very proud!
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