The Chilean government says the country will need international loans and three or four years to rebuild the country. It has mapped out a four-step quake recovery plan, and a new alert system.

The government initially said it would be able to cope with reconstruction costs out of its own budget. But it now claims it underestimated the scale of the damage, which might hit 30 billion US dollars, or nearly 15 percent of its GDP.

As the government continues to distribute aid and help, outgoing President Michelle Bachelet has pleaded with Chileans to stop hoarding supplies.