1856 Heraklion earthquake

Coordinates: 35°30′N 26°00′E / 35.5°N 26.0°E / 35.5; 26.0
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
1856 Heraklion earthquake
1856 Heraklion earthquake is located in Greece
1856 Heraklion earthquake
1856 Heraklion earthquake is located in Mediterranean
1856 Heraklion earthquake
UTC time1856-10-12 00:45
Local date11–12 October 1856
Local time02:38 am or 02:45 am EET
Duration2 minutes
Magnitude7.7–8.3 Mw
Depth61–100 km
Epicenter35°30′N 26°00′E / 35.5°N 26.0°E / 35.5; 26.0
TypeIntraplate
Areas affectedMediterranean Sea
Max. intensityMMI XI (Extreme)–MMI XII (Extreme)
TsunamiUnlikely
AftershocksYes
Casualties600+ dead
600+ injured

The 1856 Heraklion earthquake, also known as the Crete earthquake or Rhodes earthquake, occurred on the morning of October 12 at 02:45 am local time.

seaquake.[4]

Tectonic background

Along the southern coast of the Dodecanese Islands, Rhodes, Crete and the Ionian Islands, the African Plate made of oceanic crust is subducting beneath the Aegean Sea Plate (part of the Eurasian Plate) along a convergent plate boundary at a rate of 5 to 10 mm/yr. The interface of the subduction zone occasionally ruptures in large megathrust earthquakes such as those in 365 and 1303. Tsunamis are produced along the Hellenic Trench as one side of the fault is suddenly thrust upwards, displacing trillions of liters of seawater during a massive earthquake.

Earthquake

The Heraklion earthquake of 1856 was an intermediate-depth earthquake with a hypocenter depth of 60 to 90 km, occurring on a fault within the subducting African Plate.[5] The epicenter is most likely located off the northern coast of Crete, based on evaluating where the strongest isoseismic contours were. For a moment magnitude 7.7 (Mw ) event, the estimated fault dimensions is 64 km × 64 km at a depth of 90 km beneath the Aegean Sea while an 8.1–8.3 Mw would involve a 120 km × 120 km fault rupture at a deeper depth of 130 km.[6]

Effects

The earthquake caused widespread damage not just in Greece, but in the Middle East and North Africa, where additional deaths and damage was reported. An exact time of occurrence is still debated between 02:38 am or 02:45 am.[7]

Greece

The earthquake reached

Mercalli intensity scale in the central part of Crete. The city of Heraklion was almost destroyed, with only 18 or 40 of the 3,600 houses left standing. The seaside cities of Sitia and Chania were also severely damaged. A total of 538 inhabitants of Crete were killed while 637 persons were injured. On the island of Rhodes, several villages were destroyed and the coast experienced uplift. Ground failures were widely observed amidst the destruction. Sixty people died on the island. The island of Thera also reported some damage.[8] In Kasos and Karpathos, 8,000 homes were wiped-out, and there were 20 deaths.[9]

On mainland Greece, the earthquake was felt in the cities of Ioannina and Kyparissia.

Malta

Ruins of the Għajn Ħadid Tower after the earthquake.

In the

Carmelite Church, had its steeple
rebuilt because the earthquake had damaged it so severely.

Damage to structures corresponded to intensity VII, higher than expected for the 1,000 km distance from the earthquake in Greece. A typical earthquake should only be felt with intensities IV–V. The occurrence of very strong shaking is likely attributed to long period ground motion.[12]

It was this earthquake that collapsed the Għajn Ħadid Tower.[13] An eyewitness present at the tower one month before the earthquake said large cracks opened in the ground around the tower.[14]

Egypt

In

Seiches in canals caused water to splash all over while clocks stopped working as a result of the ground motions. At least ten people died in the city. Following the aftermath, many survivors slept outside their homes for fear of a collapse during the night for several days.[15][16]

In Alexandria, only some old construction fell but there were no major implications to the city. Two people were killed and some injuries were sustained to people. Around the Nile Delta, collapses of homes and falling minarets killed an additional number of people in the towns of Tanta and Damanhur.[15][17] In other parts of the delta, many residents found it difficult to stand, which terrified many. Ground motions were strong enough to shift furniture and cause water in tanks to slosh around. Sailors off the coasts reported feeling the strong earthquake as well.[18][19]

Elsewhere

Shaking was also felt in Syracuse and Pozzallo, Sicily, Italy where some minor damage occurred.[11] The shock also caused damage to places like Syria and Palestine. Eyewitnesses along the coasts of Haifa and Lebanon reported a small "tsunami" wave.[4] Effects from the earthquake was felt in the entire Adriatic Sea region and Cyprus.[8]

Legacy

In the book Domestic Life in Palestine, author Mary Eliza Rogers described her experience of the strong tremors in Haifa, Israel but she dated the event incorrectly between the night of 10 and 11 October.[7]

See also

References

  1. S2CID 14989944
    .
  2. ^ "Seismicity Catalog (550 B.C. - 2010)". Seismological Station. Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  3. ISBN 978-90-481-5909-3
    .
  4. ^ a b G. A. Papadopoulos; E. Daskalaki; A. Fokaefs; N. Giraleas. "Tsunami hazard in the eastern Mediterranean Sea: Strong earthquakes and tsunamis in the west Hellenic Arc and Trench system" (PDF). Journal of Earthquake and Tsunami. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
  5. doi:10.4401/ag-4023
    .
  6. ^ Kkallas, Charalampos; C. Papazachos; A. Skarlatoudis; Chrysanthi, Ventouzi; D. Boore; B. Margaris. (2018). "Explaining the large anomalous damage patterns of large (M7+) intermediate-depth earthquakes in the southern Aegean Sea" (PDF). 16th European Conference on: Earthquake Engineering Thessaloniki.
  7. ^
    S2CID 135012529
    .
  8. ^
    doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K
  9. ISBN 9789462701052
    .
  10. ^ Grech, Herman (2009). "We cannot be complacent about earthquakes - expert". Times of Malta. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
  11. ^ a b Galea, Pauline (2007). "Seismic history of the Maltese islands and considerations on seismic risk". Annals of Geophysics. 50 (6).
  12. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.604.1015
    .
  13. S2CID 209672820
    . Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  14. ^ Simon Mifsud. "Għajn Ħadid Tower and Aħrax Tower". MilitaryArchitecture.com. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  15. ^
    S2CID 133402193
    .
  16. ^ "Earthquakes in Malta". Maltese History & Heritage. 25 January 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  17. S2CID 110029713
    .
  18. ISBN 9780521020251
    .
  19. ISBN 9780511524912
    .
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1856_Heraklion_earthquake&oldid=1217922292"