Belisario Velasco sued by widow of a man who disappeared after the earthquake in Aisén

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SANTIAGO.- A lawsuit seeking monetary damages has been filed against Interior Minister Belisario Velasco for the disappearance of Ricardo Figueroa by his widow and her two children. Figueroa was one of the 10 people reported missing after the earthquake that shook the XI Region in April and caused a tsunami in the fjord of Aisén.

The lawsuit demands $500 million CLP in compensation for Ana María Cerón and her two surviving children due to pain and suffering and monetary damages caused by the loss of their head of household as well as a daughter, Melisa. Both father and daughter disappeared after the gigantic wave caused by the displacement of land on one of the hills adjacent to the fjord.

According to Cerón's lawyer, Hernán Montealegre, the lawsuit is being brought against minister Velasco due to the fact that he is the leader of National Emergency Office (Onemi). He claims that the organization acted in a negligent manner by not warning residents to take necessary precautions to avoid accidents after the series of tremors that preceded the large earthquake.