Aftershock hits Chile as Sebastián Piñera sworn in

Victory ends 20-year run for leftist coalition that led country back to democracy after Pinochet's dictatorship
  • The Guardian,
Chilean President-elect Sebastian Pinera arrives at the Municipal Palace in Santiago
Sebastián Piñera ordered coastal residents to flee to higher ground soon after being sworn in as Chile's president. Photograph: Leo La Valle/EPA

The billionaire businessman Sebastián Piñera was today sworn in as Chile's president and almost immediately ordered coastal residents to flee to higher ground as the country was hit by the largest aftershock since last month's devastating earthquake.

A tsunami warning was issued and the congressional building where the inauguration took place evacuated minutes after Piñera came to power. The strongest of a series of seven aftershocks had a magnitude of 6.9, swaying buildings, shaking windows and sending Chileans streaming into the street.

At the inauguration, Bolivia's President Evo Morales seemed briefly disoriented and Peru's President Alan García joked that it gave them "a moment to dance".

The government's emergency office, much criticised for failing to issue a tsunami alert that might have saved hundreds of lives from the towering waves that followed the initial quake, urged Chileans to seek higher ground even though the epicentre of the biggest shock was inland.

The aftershock occurred along the same fault line as the magnitude-8.8 quake on 27 February.

"When we get quakes in the 8 range, we would expect to see maybe a couple of aftershocks in the 7 range," said Don Blakeman of the US Geological Survey.

The outgoing president, Michelle Bachelet, said she was leaving Chile in good shape, handing over to the first rightwing president in 52 years.

Piñera said he would go right to work. The Harvard-trained economist and airline executive was planning a working visit to the tsunami-hit coastal city of Constitution and a late-night cabinet session.

On election night he had vowed to make Chile "the best country in the world" by spending billions to accelerate economic growth, create a million jobs in four years and combat crime.

Now reconstruction is his top priority. Last month's earthquake the fifth-strongest since 1900 killed 500 people, destroyed or heavily damaged at least 500,000 homes and broke apart highways and hospitals. Repairing infrastructure alone will cost $5bn (£3.3bn), and overall recovery costs could soar above $15bn.

Piñera's victory ended a 20-year run for the leftist coalition that led Chile back to democracy after the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet, and puts the country's relatively small business elite directly in power.

But Piñera has promised to maintain social programmes created by Bachelet, who leaves office with an 84% approval ratings.

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