The death toll from a powerful earthquake...

The 8.8-magnitude earthquake hit the Latin American country in the early hours of Saturday. The tremor occurred some 89 kilometers (55.3 miles) to the north of Chile"s second largest city Concepcion, some 341 kilometers (212 miles) from the capital of Santiago.

Earlier, 47 people were reported dead as a result of the earthquake.

Earlier reports set the quake magnitude at 8.3; however, the U.S. Geological Survey has recently upgraded it.

Several aftershocks, including one that measured 6.9 on the Richter scale, followed the initial quake.

The Chilean state television said the country"s president, Michelle Bachelet, was expected to arrive to the quake-hit area. Two of the country"s regions neighboring the stricken Biobio Region, Maule and Araucania, were declared a zone of catastrophe.

The Santiago Airport was reportedly closed as the result of the earthquake.

The quake caused a tsunami, which has already struck the Robinson Crusoe Island,

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