1960 valdivia earthquake eyewitness accounts
10 Major Accomplishments of Galileo Galilei, 10 Most Famous Paintings by Leonardo Da Vinci, 10 Most Famous Poems By African American Poets, 10 Most Famous Novels In Russian Literature, 10 Major Effects of the French Revolution, 10 Major Battles of the American Civil War, 10 Facts About The Rwandan Genocide In 1994, Black Death | 10 Facts On The Deadliest Pandemic In History, 10 Interesting Facts About The American Revolution, 10 Facts About Trench Warfare In World War I, Batman | 10 Interesting Facts About The Dark Knight. In the regions of Maule and Bo Bo, houses built from adobe and masonry proved weak, while from Araucana to the south weak houses were mainly those built with inappropriate wood that had decayed over time. The Nazca Plate is an oceanic tectonic plate in the eastern Pacific Ocean basin off the west coast of South America. These dams were removed later, with the exception of Calafqun Lake, which still retains its dam. Another 32 people were dead or missing in the Philippines after the tsunami hit those islands. Go to an Upper Floor or Roof of a Building, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. [23], All the new infrastructure of the small port of Baha Mansa was destroyed by the tsunami, which reached heights of up to 10 metres above sea level there. The eruption ended on 22 July 59 days later. [18] Structures that had been designed to resist earthquakes performed well during the earthquake, chiefly suffering damage when affected by soil subsidence or small fault movements. Around 8:30 p.m., coastal sirens in Hilo sounded and continued to sound intermittently for 20 minutes. Their accounts contain lessons on tsunami survival: The following is from the U.S. Geological Survey, Circular 1187, Version 1.1 and is compiled by Brian F. Atwater, Marco Cisternas V.1, Joanne Bourgeois2, Walter C. Dudley3, James W. Hendley II, and Peter H.Stauffer. There they hoped to measure the 1960 Chilean tsunami, which was expected to arrive at about midnight. Surviving a tsunami: lessons from Chile, Hawaii, and Japan, eyewitness accounts of the Pacific Ocean tsunami associated with the giant Chilean earthquake in 1960 and 2010 Corporate author : Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission Document code : IOC/BRO/2014/2 (rev.only in Eng) Actions that saved lives, and actions that cost lives, as recounted by eyewitnesses to the tsunami from the largest earthquake ever measured - the magnitude 9.5 earthquake in Chile on May 22, 1960. After the shaking ended, many people from Queule decided to head to nearby hills. Eyewitness Reports - 1960 Valdivia Earthquake Eyewitness Accounts Endo Fukuei (above, in 1999) recalls the fireman's warning that spurred citizens of Onagawa, Japan, toward high ground as the 1960 Chilean tsunami reached the town's harbor. It handles some risks adequately, from public health and medicine to the risks generated by industrial production. They got far enough to see the first tsunami wave destroy it in front of them. Some of these areas remain sparsely vegetated while others have naturally developed more or less pure stands of Nothofagus dombeyi. The 1960 Valdivia earthquake sequence ruptured about 1000 km of the southernmost section of the South American Subduction Zone. One of these areas is Cascadia-southern British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and northern California. CORFO acted the secretariat of the committee and was entrusted with the preparation of the reconstruction plan and its detailed execution. The next morning, she found Casa Grande in good shape, its ground floor dry. Not far away, the onrushing water covered land 30 feet above sea level. We find the Melinka earthquake occurs inside the slip region for the 1960 M9.5 Valdivia earthquake and within the highly locked portion of the megathrust inferred from inter . Suddenly the lights went out and we heard the sound of police sirens and ambulances. The damages were to areas of poor soil quality, chiefly former wetlands and artificial fills. Its epicenter was near Caete, Bo Bo Region, Chile, and its magnitude was 8.1 or 8.3 M W and 7.3 or 7.5 . The South American Plate is a tectonic plate which includes the continent of South America and a sizable region of the Atlantic Ocean seabed. The tremor triggered a giant tsunami which caused destruction and deaths as far away as Japan, around a day later. Ramn Ramrez, 15 years old at the time of the tsunami, survived by climbing into the branches of a cypress tree (photo at right) on a plain west of Maulln. 35 houses were severely damaged and some 44 other suffered reparable damages. I was lucky enough to be escorted to a nearby hotel by a policeman who was on my bus as it was late and there didn't seem to be any taxis. Perhaps the most basic guidance for people in Cascadia comes from the account on the following page. A massive earthquake with a magnitude of 8.8 has hit central Chile, affecting about two million people, officials say. The earthquake was a megathrust earthquake resulting from the release of mechanical stress between the subducting Nazca Plate and South American Plate on the PeruChile Trench, off the coast of southern Chile. The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. The tsunami that followed the 1960 Chile earthquake killed 105 people from Quenuir-a quarter of the village's population. The wave grew in height as it moved steadily toward the city, and the noise became deafening. At 12:46 a.m., the second wave washed under the bridge at a level 9 feet (2.7 meters) above normal. [1] It occurred in the afternoon (19:11 GMT, 15:11 local time), and lasted for approximately 10 minutes. [69] This earthquake was of similar strength and also caused a Riihuazo. Such coasts surround most of the Pacific Ocean but also include other areas, such as the shores of the Caribbean, eastern Canada, and the Mediterranean. He was a research editor with Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. from 2008 to 2016 and worked on Britannica Blog from 2010 Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. "The most powerful earthquake ever recorded struck near Valdivia, Chile on May 22, 1960, at 2:11 PM local time. The chapter also discusses the extent and effects of the hazards; their impacts on the businesses of the city; and the puzzle, despite the occurrence of similar risks, of the continued lack of business continuity planning and programs in the region almost half a century afterward. The shock of this upward thrust also pushed the water above the plate boundary upward, creating a wave that moved outward in all directions. Residents of Valdivia, Chile, inspect an enormous crack caused by the Great Chilean Earthquake on May 22, 1960. As many as 6,000 people were killed. What caused the Chile earthquake of 1960? Like everyone else in Maulln, Chile, Ramn Atala survived the 1960 Chile earthquake. During the confusion caused by the waves, Mrs. Riquelme lost her daughter, and her husband was badly injured. [12], The earthquake interrupted and effectively ended Lota's coal miners' march on Concepcin as they demanded higher salaries.[13]. Before the earthquake, some of these blocks had modern concrete buildings built after the Great Valdivia fire of 1909. Updates? 2 million people were left homeless due to the destruction caused by the 1960 Valdivia earthquake and the resultant landslides and tsunamis. Many of these people, including the nurse at right, contended with the waves near their source, along the coast of Chile. Mr. Her husband died of his injuries, and the body of her daughter was found 3 days after the tsunami. The men set up an observation post on the new bridge and began measuring the water level beneath it. It is meant for people who live, work, or play along coasts that tsunamis may strike. Ramirez, C., E. Carrasco, S. Mariani & N. Palacios. [30] On 22 May, a seiche occurred also in Nahuel Huapi Lake, on the Argentine side of the Andes, more than 200km away from Valdivia. Santiago Fernandez, from Arica, was at university when the ground began to shake. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. This chapter examines retrospectively the impact on the businesses in the city of Valdivia, Chile, of the earthquake and tsunami on "El Da de Los Santos Inocentes". El caso de Lota, Chile", "El domingo en que Valdivia sufri el terremoto ms violento del mundo", "Chile | Terremoto de Valdivia: cmo fue el poderoso sismo de 1960, el mayor registrado de la historia Vivienda al Da", "A 60 aos del terremoto de 1960 | Deutsche Wochenzeitung Cndor in Chile", "Further observations of geologic and geomorphic changes resulting from the catastrophic earthquake of May 1960, in Chile", "An Mw =7.7 slow earthquake in 1960 near the Aysn Fjord region, Chile", Revista de la Asociacin Geolgica Argentina, "El "Riihuazo" y su lucha contra la naturaleza", "Investigacin aplicada sobre Geografa Urbana: Un caso prctico en la ciudad de Valdivia", "Genesis y manifestacin de las inundaciones en el sur de Chile", "The Ecological Approach to the Conservation of Plants in Botanic Gardens - The Experience of the Botanic Garden in Valdivia, Chile", "National Strategy for Research, Development and Innovation for a Chile Resilient to Disasters of Natural Origin", "CONSULTATION REPORT ON ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT PLANNING", "Ancient Chilean tsunami scared local people away for 1000 years", "Predecessors of the giant 1960 Chile earthquake", "Tsunami After Deadly Earthquake Hits Chile", "Chile Earthquake Altered Earth Axis, Shortened Day", "El terremoto chileno del 27 de febrero de 2010: Anlisis preliminar de las consecuencias en la ciudad de Valdivia", 22 May 1960 South Central Chile Tsunami Amplitudes, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1960_Valdivia_earthquake&oldid=1152212584, This page was last edited on 28 April 2023, at 21:41. Later failure of this landslide dam unleashed a flood that covered parts of the city. The tsunami affected southern Chile, Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, eastern New Zealand, southeast Australia and the Aleutian Islands. When the first wave, only a few feet high, arrived just after midnight, hundreds of people were still at home on low ground in Hilo. However, many other residents of the area were not, and 122 were killed by the ensuing tsunami. Create your own unique website with customizable templates. About 100,000 people lived in the affected zone. In Chile, the earthquake and the tsunami that followed took more than 2,000 lives and caused property damage estimated at $550 million (1960 dollars). One landslide caused destruction and alarm following its blockage of the outflow of Riihue Lake (see below). Measurements had been made in Hawaii of Aleutian tsunamis, but little was known about the heights of tsunamis from Chile. The death toll and the monetary losses caused by the earthquake cannot be stated with certainty. Some arrived there by 4:45 a.m., as the first large wave entered town. [43] Aided by the United States, a geological survey of Valdivia was done following the earthquake and resulted in the city's first geological map. [61][63], In the coastal village Collileufu (La Araucana Region), native Lafkenches carried out a human sacrifice during the days following the main earthquake. Mr. Eaton recalls that they then heard an ominous noise, a faint rumble like a distant train, that came from the darkness far out in Hilo Bay. Mr. Argomedo was 22 years old and living on a farm outside Maulln, Chile, where he got news of the world from his radio. Subduction zones produce the strongest earthquakes on earth as their structure allows more stress to accumulate before the energy is released. More specifically, the German and Danish governments helped to create the Centro Tecnolgico de la Leche (the Milk Technological Centre) in the Southern University of Chile. Telephones were also off. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Never before had they seen so much of the streambed exposed. The bulk of the damage in Puerto Montt was located in the neighborhood of Barrio Modelo and the northern part of Baha Angelm, where artificial fills subsided. The death toll and monetary losses arising from this widespread disaster are not certain. Although many phone lines to Chile are down, survivors have been contacting. The electricity and water systems of Valdivia were totally destroyed. Focus is the point where an earthquake originates while epicenter is the point on Earths surface directly above the focus. [39] Around the main city square most buildings collapsed except for Edificio Prales and a few others. He thought he'd retrieve a few things from the family house. It had a magnitude of 8.1, lasted for 35 seconds and destroyed a third of the buildings in the city of Concepcin in Chile. While he clung to the tree, the waters of the tsunami rose to his waist. [26] Some kilometres north of Mahun at the coastal town of Queule, a carabinero reported hundreds of people dead or missing some days after the tsunami. In other words, the previous and current more widely accepted explanation for the earthquake involves the Peru-Chile Trench slipping further than its accumulated slip deficit (the amount of slip available for an earthquake) should allow. Many aftershocks occurred, with 5 of magnitude 7.0 or greater through Nov 1. An increase of two points on the scale corresponds to 1000 times increase in energy. This would have powered the entire United States, at 2005 energy consumption levels, for 740 years.". On May 22, 1960, the stress built up by years of increasing compressional force between the rocks of one plate and another was released by fracturing rocks. Geophysicists consider it a matter of time before this earthquake will be surpassed in magnitude by another. Endo Fukuei (above, in 1999) recalls the firemans warning that spurred citizens of Onagawa, Japan, toward high ground as the 1960 Chilean tsunami reached the towns harbor. The Nazca plate is a large tectonic plate that underlies the Pacific Ocean near the western coast of South America. The largest earthquake ever recorded by instruments struck southern Chile on May 22, 1960. The Mapuche spoke primarily Mapudungun. Once I was standing in the doorway, I could see that the electricity had gone out throughout the whole city. Originating off the coast of southern Chile on May 22, 1960, the temblor caused substantial damage and loss of life both in that country andas a result of the tsunamis that it generatedin distant Pacific coastal areas. Many buildings were damaged across northern Chile. Outside of town, he owned a barn and a plantation of Monterey pine. During Mass, the priest talked about earthquakes. The earthquake struck while she was digging for clams on the shore more than 4 miles west of Maulln, Chile. The community had gathered in Cerro La Mesa, while the lowlands were struck by successive tsunamis. The tremor caused localised tsunamis that severely battered the Chilean coast, with waves up to 25 metres (82ft). Egeria densa and other plants created a rich aquatic ecosystem that attracted a permanent bird fauna, notably black-necked swans. Lots of the men got off the bus. Traditional wooden houses fared better; although many were uninhabitable if they did not collapse. The most recent of these earthquakes, in 1700, set off a tsunami that struck Japan with waves about as big as those of the 1960 Chilean tsunami in Japan. A comprehensive national plan for emergencies that helped Chile better prepare for future disasters was enacted, in conjunction with legislation that increased the powers of the President in times of national emergency. The 1960 Valdivia earthquake and tsunami (Spanish: Terremoto de Valdivia) or the Great Chilean earthquake (Gran terremoto de Chile) on 22 May 1960 was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded. Eduardo Veliz, also from Iquique, said he witnessed a scene of chaos. [29] The Golgol landslides destroyed parts of international Route 215-CH, which connects to Bariloche in Argentina through Cardenal Antonio Samor Pass. Other recent earthquakes have caused more damage and loss of life, however. As the first wave receded, they looked for something to climb. Though the havoc wreaked by the shaking was not inconsequential, most casualties resulted from the descent 15 minutes later of a tsunami that rose up to 80 feet (25 metres) high on the expanse of Chilean coastlinebounded by the cities of Lebu and Puerto Aisenthat paralleled the subducting plate. Ms. Montealegre left her house minutes after the earthquake and reached high ground in time to watch the arrival of the second wave of the tsunami that followed the quake. [34] Between two sparsely populated and isolated Andean valleys, the eruption had few eyewitnesses and received little attention by local media, which was preoccupied with the severe and widespread damage and losses caused by the earthquake. El Canelo may refer to. In interviews several decades later, people in Chile, Hawaii, and Japan recall the tsunami. US Dept of Commerce Among them were the parents of two girls who were found in blackberry bushes, scratched but alive. [64] Two men were charged with the crime of murder and confessed, but later recanted. Earthquakes occur when the fault ruptures, suddenly releasing built-up energy. Debris from the cemetery came to rest more than 3 miles upriver. The electricity and water systems of Valdivia were totally destroyed; and around 20,000 people were left homeless due to the destruction of approximately 40 percent of the houses in the town. Coastal areas were also lowered and submerged in Cascadia after the 1700 Cascadia earthquake. I had to wait for five hours to get in contact with my family, who live in the neighbouring town of Altho Hospicio. The main tsunami crossed the Pacific Ocean at a speed of several hundred km/h and devastated Hilo, Hawaii, killing 61 people. Also referred to as the Great Chilean earthquake or the 1960 Valdivia earthquake, the earthquake had a magnitude of 9.5, and according to modern simulation models, generated a powerful Pacific Ocean tsunami that nearly circled the globe. Please Contact Us. [18], After the earthquake a myth relating the unusually warm and clear weather conditions prior to the earthquake to its triggering. The Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 was caused by a magnitude 9.1 earthquake; it killed at least 225,000 people in a dozen countries. The water crested at 15 feet above sea level, reaching several feet above the trees base. By 23 June, the main dam had been lowered from 24 to 15m (79 to 49ft), allowing 3billion cubic metres of water to leave the lake gradually, but still with considerable destructive power. At Mehun, near Queule, Jacinto Reyes buried some of the tsunami victims. On Sunday, May 22, 1960, Jovita Riquelme took her 5-year-old daughter to Mass in Queule, Chile. San Francisco residents watch the city burn. Although he was carried away, his warehouse created a shelter for about 20 people. The second wave reached the barn just as Mr. Navarro joined his family there. 1; 8 cm/yr; DeMets et al., 1990, Plafker and Savage, 1970 ). There were broken windows and clouds of dust everywhere. El Canelo. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The monetary cost of the disaster has been estimated in the range of US$400 million to US$800 million (2.9 to 5.8 billion in 2011, after adjusting for inflation). [75] A survey showed that 434 persons in Valdivia had their homes damaged by the earthquake. The roof of her family house served as a life raft for Armanda Cubate, her 4-year old nephew Nelson, and five others. Outside Corral the crew rescued six nearly unconscious and dehydrated children on board two boats. [32] The blocked San Pedro River, which drains the lake, passes through several towns before reaching the city of Valdivia near the coast.[33]. For example, in the town of Huara, more than 60% of houses were reportedly destroyed. The South-Central Chilean subduction zone is known for having produced some of the largest observed earthquakes - among them, the greatest instrumentally recorded earthquake, the 1960 Mw 9.5 Valdivia event [Barrientos and Ward, 1990; Cifuentes . Hawai'i had been struck in the past by deadly tsunamis, including ones from Chile in 1837 and 1877 and one from the Aleutian Islands in 1946 that in Hilo alone killed 98 people. Hundreds of people were already reported dead by the time the tsunami struck. Another wave measuring 10m (33ft) was reported ten minutes later. The first Concepcin earthquake struck at 06:02 on 21st May 1960. While Mr. Ramrez stayed safely in the cypress, the waters of the tsunami swirled about the tree. [23], In the Valdivia River and Corral Bay, several vessels were wrecked by the earthquake, among them Argentina, Canelos, Carlos Haverbeck, Melita, and the salvaged remnants of Penco. The quake possessed twice the surface energy yield the 2004 Indian Ocean quake, and equalled 178 billion tons of TNT. The bus stopped abruptly, and all the locals on the bus were craning their heads to see what was going on. The combined effects of the disaster left two million people homeless. How does the Chile earthquake of 1960 compare with other recent earthquakes? They knew that the 1946 Aleutian tsunami had destroyed the bridge there. However, he lost his life while trying to save something from the tsunami that followed. Speaking personally it was a terrible shock to be awakened from deep sleep at the beginning of the earthquake. Fortunately today normality and calm has returned to the city. The port of Puerto Montt collapsed. The 1960 earthquake found Mrs. Silva at home and her husband on a nearby hillside. The men had good reason to measure this tsunami. 1. Only when they saw a low wall of water less than a mile away did the Navarros head for high ground. Though the death toll in Chile was never fully resolved, early estimates of deaths worldwide, ranging into the thousands, were scaled back to 1,655. Chile is located along the Pacific Ring of Fire, a known zone of high seismicity. Coastal villages, such as Toltn, were struck. In addition to this loss of the living, Quenuir lost many of its dead. He recalls that some of the houses, with their stoves still smoking, looked like ships. It is the most commonly used scale to measure medium to large earthquake magnitudes. About 3,000 people were injured. It shows that business recovery from a disaster is a complex and uncertain social outcome. The Valdivia earthquake occurred at 15:11 UTC-4 on 22 May, and affected all of Chile between Talca and Chilo Island, more than 400,000 square kilometres (150,000sqmi). Both he and Ms. Cubate's mother drowned in the tsunami. National Geographic Headquarters 1145 17th Street NW Washington, DC 20036. [20] This magnitude 7.7 earthquake probably occurred along the Liquie-Ofqui Fault, meaning that the fault would have moved as a consequence of the 22 May Valdivia earthquake. The epicenter of the 1960 Valdivia earthquake lay around 100 miles of the coast of Chile in the Pacific Ocean. Measurements of past tsunamis are commonly used to help identify areas at risk from future tsunamis. [11], The 1960 Chilean earthquakes were a sequence of strong earthquakes that affected Chile between 21 May and 6 June 1960, centered in the Araucana, Aysn, and Bo Bo regions of the country.
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