Punitaqui
Encyclopedia
Punitaqui is a town and commune of Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

 in the Limarí Province
Limarí Province
Limarí Province is one of three provinces of the Chilean region of Coquimbo Region . Its capital is the city of Ovalle-Geography and demography:...

.

History

Punitaqui was once part of the Ovalle Department before the administrative restructuring of 1976.

1997 earthquake

On October 15, 1997 the town was nearly demolished by an estimated 7.1 Mw earthquake
1997 Punitaqui earthquake
The 1997 Punitaqui earthquake occurred at 01:03 UTC on October 15. It had an estimated magnitude of 7.1. This earthquake was one of the most destructive in the epicentral area compared to other events of subduction of the same size...

. Damage ranged from as far north as the Antofagasta Region
Antofagasta Region
The II Antofagasta Region is one of Chile's fifteen first-order administrative divisions. It comprises three provinces, Antofagasta, El Loa and Tocopilla...

 to the southern Araucanía Region
Araucanía Region
The IX Araucanía Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions and comprises two provinces: Malleco in the north and Cautín in the south....

. Both Santiago and Valparaíso Region
Valparaíso Region
The V Valparaíso Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions.Valparaíso Region, 2006 With the country's third highest population of 1,539,852 million in 2002 and third smallest area of , the region is Chile's second most densely populated after the Santiago Metropolitan Region...

 lost telephone service and radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...

 transmissions. The quake left 8 people dead, 360 injured and 59,913 homeless, concentrating most of those in the provinces of Elqui
Elqui Province
Elqui Province is a province in the Chilean region of Coquimbo . The provincial capital is the city of Coquimbo. The province has an area of , and has 365,371 inhabitants.-Geography and demography:...

 and Limarí
Limarí Province
Limarí Province is one of three provinces of the Chilean region of Coquimbo Region . Its capital is the city of Ovalle-Geography and demography:...

.

Demographics

According to the 2002 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

 by the National Statistics Institute
National Statistics Institute (Chile)
The National Statistics Institute of Chile is a state-run organization of the Government of Chile, created in the second half of the 19th century and tasked with performing a general census of population and housing, then collecting, producing and publishing official demographic statistics of...

, the commune covers an area of 1339.3 sqkm with a population of 9,539 inhabitants (4,791 male and 4,748 female). The population grew 9.4% (816 persons) between 1992 and 2002. There are 3,615 inhabitants in urban area
Urban area
An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...

s and 5,924 in rural areas.

Administration

As a commune, Punitaqui is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council
Municipal council
A municipal council is the local government of a municipality. Specifically the term can refer to the institutions of various countries that can be translated by this term...

, headed by an alcalde
Alcalde
Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An alcalde was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian cabildo and judge of first instance of a town...

 who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Blanca Elena Araya Zepeda.

Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Punitaqui is represented in the Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of Chile
The Chamber of Deputies of the Republic of Chile is the lower house of Chile's bicameral Congress. Its organisation and its powers and duties are defined in articles 42 to 59 of Chile's current constitution....

 by Mrs. Adriana Muñoz (PDC
Christian Democratic Party
Christian democratic parties are those political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social teaching, and it continues to be influential in Europe and...

) and Mr. Luis Lemus (Ind.
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...

) as part of the 9th electoral district, (together with Combarbalá
Combarbala
Combarbalá is a Chilean city and commune, located in the Limarí Province, Coquimbo Region. The overall population of the commune is about 14.000 inhabitants, while the population of the city is about 6000 inhabitants...

, Monte Patria
Monte Patria
Monte Patria is a city and one of four communes in the Limarí Province of Chile's north-central IV Coquimbo Region.-Administration:As a commune, Monte Patria is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a Communal Council , headed by a directly elected alcalde...

, Illapel
Illapel
Illapel is a Chilean city, which is the capital of the Choapa Province, Coquimbo Region. It lies along the Illapel River and marks the country's narrowest point along a parallel .It's located to the east of Los Vilos.-Administration:...

, Salamanca
Salamanca, Chile
Salamanca is a Chilean city and commune in Choapa Province, Coquimbo Region. It is located east of Illapel, the province's administrative center, and north of Santiago, Chile...

, Los Vilos
Los Vilos
Los Vilos is both a Chilean coastal commune and a coastal city with over 9,000 inhabitants , located in the Province of Choapa, part of the IV Region of Coquimbo. Its main activity is fishing. The city also has a significant amount of tourism, mainly due to its two beaches: La Principal and Las...

, Canela
Canela
Canela, meaning Cinnamon in Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian, is a town located in the Serra Gaúcha of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Both Canela and neighboring Gramado are important tourist resorts and they both draw many visitors each year. Ecotourism is very popular in the area and there are many...

). The commune is represented in the Senate
Senate of Chile
The Senate of the Republic of Chile is the upper house of Chile's bicameral National Congress, as established in the current Constitution of Chile.-Composition:...

 by Evelyn Matthei Fornet (UDI) and Jorge Pizarro Soto (PDC
Christian Democratic Party
Christian democratic parties are those political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social teaching, and it continues to be influential in Europe and...

) as part of the 4th senatorial constituency (Coquimbo Region).

External links

Municipality of Punitaqui
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