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María Elena is a Chilean city and commune in Tocopilla Province, Antofagasta Region. According to the 2012 census, the commune population was 4,593 and has an area of .〔 == History == Maria Elena is named after Mary Ellen Comdon, wife of the first saltpeter refinery office (''oficina salitre'') manager, Elias Cappelens. Originally, the name of the office was "Coya Norte". Situated on land purchased from the Treasury in 1924, the plant was inaugurated in 1926 with the sodium nitrate extraction system patented by the Guggenheim Brothers, which replaced the Shanks system. Its layout was made on the basis of the flag of the United Kingdom. Together with the former refinery at Pedro de Valdivia built in 1931, they were the largest saltpeter refineries with a combined output of over one million tons per year. In 1965 both were taken over by the state, through ''Sociedad Química y Minera'' (SQM or "Chemistry and Mining Society", which was privatized in 1980. This privatization explains why most people's land and buildings are owned by SQM and not the Chilean state. In 1996, it became the only active mining community in the country after the closure of the saltpeter office at Pedro de Valdivia. After the closure of the latter office, many workers and their families were relocated to Maria Elena. On November 14, 2007, the 7.7 Mw Tocopilla earthquake with an epicenter north of Maria Elena, devastated the area. Almost all the town's old houses collapsed or were rendered uninhabitable, and the local hospital almost completely collapsed with no loss of life or injuries 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「María Elena」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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