New Zealand diplomatic staff have made contact with about 250 Kiwis in Chile after the South American country was rocked by an 8.8 earthquake on Saturday.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said about 20 New Zealanders were still unaccounted for.
The quake struck shortly after 7.30pm (NZ time) and is the fifth largest quake on record since 1900, according to GNS Geonet project director Ken Gledhill.
The death toll stands at 723 and Chilean authorities are still pulling survivors from the ruins of collapsed buildings.
The MFAT spokesman said communication lines were still down in some areas and appealed to New Zealanders who had heard from friends and family to contact the Ministry.
He said anyone who had not made contact with friends and family should call MFAT on 0800 432 111.
Meanwhile, troops and police have been sent in to tackle looting in Chile's second largest city Concepcion.
Mayor Jacqueline van Rysselberghe told Radio Cooperativa that some food aid was arriving in the city of 200,000 for distribution to the hungry. Electricity was still out, however, and water was scarce.
Concepcion police chief Eliecer Soler said officers arrested 55 people for violating a curfew imposed after looters sacked nearly every market in town.
- NZHERALD STAFF and AP
Twenty NZers in Chile still unaccounted for
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