Peruvian,Earthquake

1970

By- Grace Chmielewski

Date, Magnitude and Location

     On  May 31, 1970, an earthquake appeard in Ancash Peru with the magnitude of 8.0.damage occurred all over Peru's coastal areas of Ancash. In the city of Huaraz, as many as 20,000 people died underneath buildings that were crashing down on to them. Chimbote and other towns in the area were also immensly damaged or destroyed. Most of the quakes happend 15 miles off the coast of Peru, much lower the the Pacific Ocean seafloor. Even though the quake effectd people on land it did not disturb the seabedso no major tsunamis occurred.

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             Casualties  and damage

The deaths that occurred from the earthquake and avalanches totaled around 47,194 people. "although some estimates place it as high as 66,000. About 19,600 went missing and 143,331 were injured. Over 500,000 people were left homeless. In Yungay, 17,000 people died due to the landslide, and only 400 survived. Survivors included people who were at high points of the town, such as the cemetery, as well as children at a circus and 300 persons at the local stadium".^[1]

     An area of about 83,000 sq km, extending over Ancash and La Libertad regions, was affected due to this seismic movement. Over 3 million people were affected by this earthquake. Around 74,194 individuals lost their lives in this natural calamity, as many as 25,600 went missing and 143,331 were injured. More than a million people were left homeless. At least 20,000 people died in the landslide in Yungay town alone. The quake had a huge impact on the infrastructure of the region. Almost the entire communication system was destroyed. The economic loss was estimated to be more than half a billion USD. All the basic facilities were either seriously damaged or totally destroyed. More than 80% buildings in the cities of Chimbote, Carhuaz and Recuay were razed to the ground. The coastal areas were the most affected. Cities like Chimbote, Casma, Huarmey and Supe suffered large scale damage, while cities like Huaraz, Caraz and Aija were partly damaged. The Cañón del Pato hydroelectricity generator was damaged due to the excessive flooding of River Santa. Damage induced to the Pan American highway resulted in delay of humanitarian aid to the affected areas.^[2]

           After Effects of the Earthquake

Bibliography-

•  "Peru's Earthquake of 1970 ." N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar 2010. 
•   " 1970 Ancash earthquake: Facts, Discussion Forum, and Encyclopedia Article." AbsoluteAstronomy.com. mundoandino.com, n.d. Web. 2 Apr. 2010.