Chile's government has declared three days of national mourning after last Saturday's earthquake killed more than 800 people, destroyed infrastructure and left thousands of survivors homeless.

Following criticisms over delays in distributing aid, particularly to hard-hit coastal areas - six days after the 8.8-magnitude quake - Michelle Bachelet, the outgoing president, appealed for international financial assistance to help re-build quake-ravaged areas.

In Constitucion, one of the coastal villages, the damage from the earthquake and the ensuing tsunami destroyed three hospices that care for the elderly, forcing many to move to makeshift shelters.

Al Jazeera's Teresa Bo meets some of Chile's most vulnerable citizens, made even more vulnerable by the quake. (Mar 5, 2010)