Quake death toll tops 700

Rescue teams in Chile redoubled their efforts to search for survivors on Monday, as the number of people killed in Saturday's earthquake climbed to over 700. The extent of the disaster has become clear in coastal areas, where giant waves left behind a path of death and destruction.

Debris in Chile's coastal town of Pellehue, close to the earthquake's epicentre. Reuters

The Chilean government has declared a night-time curfew in two of the worst-hit areas, the central Maule region and the second city of Concepcion and its province, where security fears rose as police fired tear-gas and water cannons to disperse gangs of looters.

President Michelle Bachelet said she expected the toll of 708 to rise further, while her government admitted it had made an error by failing to warn Chileans about the tsunami risk following Saturday's 8.8-magnitude quake.

"There was a mistake," said Defence Minister Francisco Vidal, who said the navy should have issued a tsunami alert.

State television reports more than 300 bodies have been found in the swamped fishing village of Constitucion alone, although there is so far no independent confirmation.

The mayor of Concepcion has pleaded urgently for help as rescuers with heat detectors are continuing their hunt for people believed to trapped under a 15-storey apartment block which collapsed during the quake.

"We need food for the population," said Mayor Jacqueline van Rysselberghe. "We are without supplies, and if we don't resolve that we are going to have serious security problems during the night."

The Chilean air force is due to begin flying in food and aid to the worst hit areas, many of which had their lines of transport cut off by the earthquake.

Japan on Monday pledged up to 3 million dollars (2.2 million euros) in aid to Chile, as well as medical teams and emergency supplies.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who arrived in Uruguay on Monday as part of a six-country tour of Latin America, will visit Chile's capital Santiago on Tuesday, where she will discuss the effects of the earthquake with President Bachelet and President-Elect Sebastián Piñera.