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PARKERSBURG - A Parkersburg man who spent time in Chile before and after the recent earthquake believes the country will prevail over the damage brought on by the disaster.

Jeremy Cunningham, 23, had been in the South American country since August, teaching English to students in grades 9-12 at Colegio Santa Ines, a Catholic school in San Vicente de Tagua Tagua. He also helped to recruit prospective teachers for the Volunteach program through the Council For International Educational Exchange.

Cunningham, who is a 2005 graduate of Parkersburg High School and a 2009 graduate of Marietta College, has taken Spanish since the seventh grade and all through high school and majored in it in college (along with international business). He also has spent time studying in Peru.

He was in Chile when a magnitude 8.8 earthquake hit the central region on Feb. 27. However, he was sightseeing in the northern part of the country, near Calama, and missed the brunt of the disaster.

The event still affected Cunningham as he was unable to leave the country for a few days because of earthquake damage at the airport in the capital city of Santiago.

''I was lucky because I left Santiago on Friday (Feb. 26) to travel for a few days,'' he said. ''The day after was when the earthquake happened.

''I initially didn't know about it until I was watching the news the next day. They had reports about what happened. Over the next few days it showed the areas most affected, like Concepcion. I didn't see any of it until I got back to Santiago. I didn't feel anything where I was.''

Officials worked during that time to get the airport operational as relief materials began arriving in the country.

Cunningham watched news reports from the hostel he was staying at and kept apprised of developments at the airport.

''Luckily, they had Internet access,'' he said. ''The first few days, I couldn't call home, but I could e-mail people to let them know I was OK.''

He was finally able to get a flight and return to Santiago on March 3.

After he left, a smaller earthquake hit the Calama area.

''It seemed like it was on my heels the whole time,'' he said.

Cunningham felt aftershocks while in Santiago.

His flight back to the United States wasn't until March 5, so he had all day March 4 to check on his host family, the school and other people he knew. He was able to take a bus to the area where he had been living.

''On my way, I saw some highways collapsed and some bridges had fallen,'' Cunningham said. ''Because of that we had to take alternate routes. There were collapsed overpasses and broken highways.''

The school where he taught fared well with a fallen ceiling in the library and rooms with moderate damage.

''The effects were not severe,'' Cunningham said. ''There was some superficial damage, things like cracks. The school survived and was in good condition.''

He found out that students at the school had lost their homes.

Within the town of San Vicente, a church had almost collapsed. It was supposedly one of the biggest churches made of adobe in the area.

''The front wall was basically all that was left,'' Cunningham said. ''The ceiling had fallen through.''

Other buildings had sustained damage and basic services were interrupted.

''In general, it was in relatively good shape compared to areas like Concepcion where the epicenter was,'' he said.

The area where Cunningham was was roughly 600-800 kilometers from the earthquake's epicenter.

He was finally able to return home to Parkersburg on March 6.

Cunningham said he would like to return to the country someday as he has invitations from people with the school and others who have a place for him to stay.

''It was like I became a part of their families,'' he said.

The people of Chile will recover from this crisis as the recovery continues and groups raise funds to help with efforts, he said.

''Initially, the people were in shock having an earthquake of that size and power,'' Cunningham said. ''Before I even left, they were starting to receive aid and help.

''I think they will be able to rebuild. The families there are very close-knit. Because of the earthquake, everyone in Chile became one big family. There was a sense of unity and a sense that they were all going to get through this and they were going to get through it together. I am very sure they will be able to rebuild.''