Concepcion

On the road south from the international airport in Managua, Nicaragua swooshes by, unfurling in buzzing, humid green. Fields of swaying banana trees recede from the road in rows, the shaggy fronds bouncing against a searing blue sky. I look south toward the twin conical peaks of Concepción and Maderas hovering over the horizon. It is Concepción that worries me. It is the active volcano I had committed to scaling. Volcán Concepción towers 5,280 feet up from Lake Nicaragua, Central America's largest lake.

On the road south from the international airport in Managua, Nicaragua swooshes by, unfurling in buzzing, humid green. Fields of swaying banana trees recede from the road in rows, the shaggy fronds bouncing against a searing blue sky. I look south toward the twin conical peaks of Concepción and Maderas hovering over the horizon. It is Concepción that worries me. It is the active volcano I had committed to scaling. Volcán Concepción towers 5,280 feet up from Lake Nicaragua, Central America's largest lake.

Belen Portino was looking forward to finishing high school and continuing her studies in a top university before last month's earthquake struck, shutting down Chile's second city. "All of a sudden there's no school, no teachers, we don't know what's going to happen," the animated 16-year-old said as she and an elder sister made the cheerless rounds of looter-ravaged shops downtown looking for food for their family. "Concepcion was a city where I had a future. It's a great place to live.

Belen Portino was looking forward to finishing high school and continuing her studies in a top university before last month's earthquake struck, shutting down Chile's second city. "All of a sudden there's no school, no teachers, we don't know what's going to happen," the animated 16-year-old said as she and an elder sister made the cheerless rounds of looter-ravaged shops downtown looking for food for their family. "Concepcion was a city where I had a future. It's a great place to live.

The Chilean army marched into this wrecked city Tuesday, rounding up looters and receiving the applause of besieged survivors of the weekend's massive earthquake. Despite Chile's tortured history with the military, the armed forces now are being looked at by many here as their savior -- a necessary, if slow-in-coming, show of force in the face of utter disaster and deteriorating security. "They should have done this a long time ago," civil engineer Carlos Aguilar, 42, said as soldiers armed with M-16s pulled a group of young thieves from a disheveled Cruz Verde pharmacy and loaded them into the back of a van. The crowd that gathered applauded and shouted words of thanks.

A bomb exploded outside the North American-Chilean Cultural Institute in the city of Concepcion on Wednesday night, shattering windows and injuring a passing teen-age girl with flying glass, an official report said Thursday. Ten minutes later in the same city, 320 miles south of here, a branch of Morgan Finansa, a U.S.-owned bank, was damaged by a second bomb, but no one was hurt, the report said. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks.

Rescuers searched for survivors on Sunday, a day after one of the biggest earthquakes in recorded history rocked Chile, killing at least 392 people, leaving many more missing, toppling buildings and freeways, and setting off sirens thousands of miles away. Authorities lifted tsunami warnings Sunday after smaller-than-feared waves washed shores across the Pacific, including Southern California, Hawaii and Japan. Scattered looting broke out Sunday in some of the most heavily damaged areas of Chile, where residents were without water or electricity.

Looting spread in earthquake-leveled parts of Chile on Monday even as government troops deployed in armored vehicles and on horseback to restore order and protect shipments of food and water. Scores of people were arrested for violating an overnight curfew. With the death toll creeping higher, Chile continued to reel from Saturday's massive magnitude 8.8 quake, one of the strongest on record. At least 723 people were killed, the government said, and many remained missing. Numerous oceanfront towns, like Lloca, Dichato and Constitucion, were devastated first by the quake and then, minutes later, by a tsunami, a kind of seismic coup de grace.

Dave Concepcion of the Cincinnati Reds had a dream that he broke Joe DiMaggio's record of hitting in 56 consecutive games. The veteran shortstop, working on a 17-game streak, told Manager Pete Rose before Monday's game with San Francisco: "I dreamed I went to 56 games and then took it to 61." Rose reminded Concepcion that to break DiMaggio's record he first would have to break the National League record of 44 games. Rose, who holds the record, told Concepcion: "I'll tell you something, Davey.

Concepcion Valenzuela, 72, mother of the late rock 'n' roll star Richie Valens. Valens, who died in 1959 at age 17 in the same plane crash that killed singers Buddy Holly and J. P. (Big Bopper) Richardson, is the subject of the current hit movie "La Bamba." In Watsonville, Calif., on Sunday of what was described only as a long illness.

The massive magnitude 8.8 earthquake that struck off the coast of Chile last month moved the entire city of Concepcion -- the closest urban area to the quake's epicenter -- at least 10 feet west, American researchers said Monday. Chile's capital, Santiago, moved about 11 inches to the west-southwest, while Buenos Aires, all the way across the continent from the quake site, moved about an inch to the west, the researchers said. The cities of Valparaiso and Mendoza, Argentina, both northeast of Concepcion, also moved significantly.

The Chilean army marched into this wrecked city Tuesday, rounding up looters and receiving the applause of besieged survivors of the weekend's massive earthquake. Despite Chile's tortured history with the military, the armed forces now are being looked at by many here as their savior -- a necessary, if slow-in-coming, show of force in the face of utter disaster and deteriorating security. "They should have done this a long time ago," civil engineer Carlos Aguilar, 42, said as soldiers armed with M-16s pulled a group of young thieves from a disheveled Cruz Verde pharmacy and loaded them into the back of a van. The crowd that gathered applauded and shouted words of thanks.

Looting spread in earthquake-leveled parts of Chile on Monday even as government troops deployed in armored vehicles and on horseback to restore order and protect shipments of food and water. Scores of people were arrested for violating an overnight curfew. With the death toll creeping higher, Chile continued to reel from Saturday's massive magnitude 8.8 quake, one of the strongest on record. At least 723 people were killed, the government said, and many remained missing. Numerous oceanfront towns, like Lloca, Dichato and Constitucion, were devastated first by the quake and then, minutes later, by a tsunami, a kind of seismic coup de grace.

Rescuers searched for survivors on Sunday, a day after one of the biggest earthquakes in recorded history rocked Chile, killing at least 392 people, leaving many more missing, toppling buildings and freeways, and setting off sirens thousands of miles away. Authorities lifted tsunami warnings Sunday after smaller-than-feared waves washed shores across the Pacific, including Southern California, Hawaii and Japan. Scattered looting broke out Sunday in some of the most heavily damaged areas of Chile, where residents were without water or electricity.

One of the biggest earthquakes in recorded history rocked Chile on Saturday, killing more than 300 people, toppling buildings and freeways, and setting off sirens thousands of miles away as governments scrambled to protect coastal residents from the ensuing tsunami. Chilean President Michelle Bachelet declared parts of the country "catastrophe zones" in the wake of the magnitude 8.8 quake, which was centered offshore, about 70 miles north of the port city of Concepcion. With images of Haiti's devastation from an earthquake last month still fresh, the world woke up to a new disaster and fears of another catastrophic toll.

Nonito Donaire unanimously outpointed Rafael Concepcion on Saturday night in his first super-flyweight fight to take the World Boxing Assn. interim title in Las Vegas. Donaire, the 26-year-old Filipino star who vacated his IBF flyweight title to move up in weight, improved to 22-1 with his 21st consecutive victory. Judge Max De Luca scored the fight 117-111, Duane Ford had it 115-113, and Jerry Roth called it 116-112. Donaire used a potent jab to cut open a gash under Concepcion's left eye midway through the second round at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.

For years, he was an immaculate Concepcion, the All-Star shortstop whose steady glove and heady play anchored more than a generation of Cincinnati Reds infields. He was there to break in with Tommy Helms and Lee May, and he was there to break in Ron Oester and Nick Esasky. But the year is 1989. Davey Concepcion is 40. He is no longer an All-Star, or a starter, or even a Cincinnati Red.

After sharing time with U. L. Washington the past three seasons, shortstop Onix Concepcion came to training camp with the Kansas City Royals assured of his starting job this year. Concepcion, 26, moved ahead of Washington in 1984, and now Washington has been traded away to the Montreal Expos. "I knew at the end of last year that either U.L. or me would be traded," Concepcion said. "I knew when they traded him that it was my position."

Alberto Concepcion helped USC win its College World Series opener with his bat. Today against Miami, the Trojans probably will be more in need of the sophomore catcher's arm. Concepcion, who hit two home runs against Georgia on Saturday, will be on the spot against a Hurricane team that leads the nation with 219 stolen bases, 69 more than the next-best team. "Miami's speed is off the charts," USC Coach Mike Gillespie said. "We have to keep them from getting to first base.