Chile battles the devastating quake

One of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded struck Chile on Saturday, toppling homes, collapsing bridges and plunging trucks into the fractured earth.

800 people have lost their lives and the numbers are rising.

In this pic, a man looks through the rubble of a destroyed car dealership in Santiago after the devastating quake.(AFP Photo)

Powerful aftershocks rattled Chile's coast - 41 of them magnitude 5 or greater - in the 10 hours after the quake. Six were sizable quakes in their own right, magnitude 6 or greater.

Cars are seen flipped over after a bridge collapsed in Santiago due to the earthquake in Chile. (AFP)

Chile's government conceded that it committed an "error" in initially downplaying the risk of tsunami from the massive earthquake - a mistake that may have cost many lives.

Picture showing the massive destruction caused by a tsunami in the Chilean city of Pulluhue, 320 km south of Santiago. (AFP Image)

Picture showing the massive destruction caused by a tsunami in the Chilean city of Dichato, some 30 km from Concepcion.(AFP Image)

Heroism and banditry mingled on Chile's shattered streets on Sunday as rescuers braved aftershocks digging for survivors and the government sent soldiers and ordered a nighttime curfew to quell looting.

In this picture, residents cry after looters set fire to a supermarket next to their house in Constitucion. (AP Image)

"We have to leave this doomed town," screamed Dennise Pincochet, a resident of Constitucion, in front of her destroyed house and completely devastated neighborhood. (NYT Photo)

A family looks for belongings in what remains of their house in Constitucion.

The house was pushed some 200 meters from where it originally stood by a tsunami that was caused by Saturday's earthquake.(NYT Photo)

In this picture, a man looks through the remains of his house on in Constitucion.(NYT Photo)

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet declared a "state of catastrophe" in central Chile and said the country would accept some of the offers of aid that have poured in from around the world.

Seen here, a car next to rubble in Curico, 250 km south of Santiago.(AFP Photo)

In Concepcion, the largest city in the disaster zone, a new, 15-story apartment building toppled onto its side.

Relatives of earthquake victims react outside a destroyed building in Concepcion. (AP Image)

A building is seen destroyed at an intersection in Concepcion.(AFP Image)

Seen here, a man cleaning the rubble in a street of Santiago following the catastrophic quake.(AFP Photo)

A general view of the Museum of Fine Arts in downtown Santiago shows the damaged caused by the huge 8.8-magnitude earthquake. (AFP Photo)

Shoppers line up in front of a grocery store as they wait for it to open in Honolulu, Hawaii. Residents are stocking up on food and emergency supplies in preparation for a potentially damaging tsunami, after a massive earthquake hit Chile. (AFP)

A beacon of hope : A painting of Jesus Christ hangs from a damaged house in Iloca, Chile.(AFP Image)

Patients of Tacla Hospital, including those injured in the devastating earthquake, being treated outside of the facility which was damaged severely by the quake. (NYT Photo)

In Santiago, modern buildings are built to withstand earthquakes, but many older ones were heavily damaged, including the Nuestra Senora de la Providencia church, whose bell tower collapsed.

Seen here, a man passing a damaged church on Sunday in Constitucion. (NYT Photo)

Smoke from a burning building fills the sky in the outskirts of Santiago after the devastating quake. (AFP Photo)

This image obtained from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows a model of the preliminary forecast of the tsunami triggered by the 8.8 eartquake in Chile. The model shows waves of up to one meter travelling across the Pacific Ocean. (AFP)

Tourists are seen outside of a destroyed hotel in Vina del Mar after a huge 8.8-magnitude earthquake rocked Chile. (AFP)