2002 Hindu Kush earthquakes

Last updated
2002 Hindu Kush earthquakes
HinduKushEQs.JPG
Afghanistan physical map.svg
Bullseye1.png
UTC  time2002-03-03 12:08:19
 2002-03-25 14:56:33
ISC  event 5267309
  2947182
USGS-ANSS  
  ComCat
  ComCat
Local date 
 March 3, 2002 (2002-03-03)
 March 25, 2002 (2002-03-25)
Local time16:38
 19:26
Magnitude7.4 Mw 
 6.1 Mw 
DepthMarch 3 – 226 km (140 mi)
8 km (5 mi)
Epicenter 36°30′N70°29′E / 36.5°N 70.48°E / 36.5; 70.48
Type Dip-slip
Max. intensityMarch 3 – MMI VI (Strong) [1]
March 25 – MMI VII (Very strong) [2]
Casualties
  • 166 dead, some injured (March 3 event) [3]
  • 1,200 dead (March 25 event)

The 2002 Hindu Kush earthquakes struck in northern Afghanistan during the month of March. At least 166 people were killed with a very large and intermediate-depth mainshock on March 3. Three weeks later, at least 1,200 were killed during a moderate but shallow event that had a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII (Very strong). The M7.4 and M6.1 reverse events were focused in the Hindu Kush mountain range area. [1] [2]

Contents

Tectonic setting

Northern Afghanistan lies within the broad zone of continuing collision between the Indian plate and the Eurasian plate. The area is seismically active, particularly as a result of faulting at just over 200 km depth within the descending slab. Many large events of M ≥ 7 have been observed in the Hindu Kush, all with similar epicenters, with an approximate periodicity of about 10–15 years. These events have reverse fault focal mechanisms, which for the near-vertical slab indicates active extension. It has been proposed that these earthquakes are a result of "necking" of the downgoing slab, a process that may eventually lead to break-off. [4]

Smaller shallow focus earthquakes are also observed in the region, particularly associated with north–south trending zones of right lateral strike-slip, such as the Chaman Fault, with an increasing degree of shortening to the north, together accommodating the highly oblique convergence between the Indian plate and the Eurasian plate. [5]

Earthquakes

The earthquake on March 3 had a magnitude of 7.4 Mw , with a hypocentral depth of 225.6 km. The focal mechanism is consistent with reverse faulting within subducting oceanic crust. Comparison with similar earthquakes in 1993 and 2015, which have very similar depths and epicenters, suggests that the major component of the slip in all three events occurred on the same part of the fault. [4]

The earthquake on March 25 had a magnitude of 6.1 Mw , with a hypocentral depth of 8.0 km. It had a reverse fault mechanism that occurred on one of two possible moderately-dipping north–south trending faults.

Damage

March 3 event

At 12:08:19 UTC a 7.4 tremor hit an area 65 km (40 mi) S of Feyzabad, Afghanistan. At least 150 people were killed, several injured and 400 houses damaged or destroyed by a landslide that dammed and flooded Surkundara Valley, Samangan Province. At least 13 people were killed at Kabul and Rostaq and 3 people killed in Bajaur, Pakistan. At least 300 houses were destroyed in Badakhshan and Takhar Provinces. A 45 meter wide fissure opened in Xiker Reservoir in Xinjiang, China. This was a deep focus event and was felt in much of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Felt also in Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and India. [1]

March 25 event

At 14:56:33 UTC, a magnitude 6.1 tremor hit an area 160 km (99 mi) southwest of Feyzabad, Afghanistan. The United Nations estimated approximately 1,200 people dead and 20,000 families affected. This was a shallow focus event and was felt strongly in much of northern Afghanistan. Also felt in the Islamabad-Peshawar area, Pakistan and at Dushanbe, Tajikistan. [2] In Nahrin, many homes collapsed; the maximum Modified Mercalli intensity was assigned VII (Very strong). The high death toll and heavy damage was attributed to poor construction—most homes were constructed of mud brick. [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

The 2005 Hindu Kush earthquake hit northeastern Afghanistan with a magnitude of 6.5 on December 12 at 21:47 (UTC). According to the United States Geological Survey, the maximum Mercalli intensity was V (Moderate) at Chitral. Five people were killed in the Hindu Kush region and landslides blocked several roads near Bagh, Kashmir. The earthquake occurred some 65 miles away from Faizabad, a city in the Hindu Kush mountains, but it could be felt in many neighboring areas. It could even be felt about 200 miles away in Islamabad, Pakistan. The quake was strong enough to trigger panic among survivors of October's devastating earthquake, who came out from their makeshift shelters in freezing temperatures. Although magnitude–6 earthquakes typically cause severe damage, this quake caused relatively little due to the fact that it occurred deep underground.

The 2003 Colima earthquake occurred on 21 January with a moment magnitude of 7.6 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe). The epicenter was located on the Pacific coast in the Mexican state of Colima. The earthquake was felt as far away as Mexico City and in southern parts of the United States.

The 1989 Malawi earthquake occurred on 10 March in central Malawi, with a moment magnitude of 6.3 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe). It was preceded by a number of foreshocks, the largest being a 5.7 Mw shock on the previous day. The earthquake was felt strongly throughout central Malawi, and also felt in parts of Mozambique and Zambia. Nine people were killed, with many others injured or left homeless.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lists of 21st-century earthquakes</span>

The following is a summary of significant earthquakes during the 21st century. In terms of fatalities, the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was the most destructive event with 227,898 confirmed fatalities, followed by the 2010 Haiti earthquake with about 160,000 fatalities, the 2008 Sichuan earthquake with 87,587 fatalities, the 2005 Kashmir earthquake suffered by Pakistan with 87,351 fatalities, and the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes with at least 59,488 fatalities.

A 6.2 magnitude earthquake occurred in Afghanistan on October 22, 2009 at 19:51:27 UTC. The maximum Mercalli intensity was V (Moderate) at Fayzabad, Badakhshan.

On October 31 at 17:53 UTC the island of New Guinea was shaken by an earthquake of magnitude 6.9 Mw that particularly affected the city of Madang on the north coast of Papua New Guinea. Causing between five and eighteen fatalities, it triggered landslides that ran down steep hills into poorly reinforced wooden huts. The area that experienced the most powerful intensity extended 20 kilometers (12 mi) out from the epicenter. Underwater landslides caused minor tsunami over about 100 km of coast and severed underwater cables in several places.

The 1881 Nicobar Islands earthquake occurred at about 07:49 local time on 31 December, with an epicentre beneath Car Nicobar. It occurred as two separate ruptures, the largest of which had an estimated magnitude of 7.9 on the moment magnitude scale and triggered a tsunami that was observed around the Bay of Bengal. It is probably the earliest earthquake for which rupture parameters have been estimated instrumentally.

The 1941 Colima earthquake occurred on April 15 at 19:09 UTC. The epicenter was located in the State of Michoacán, Mexico.

The 1931 Oaxaca earthquake affected portions of southern Mexico on January 14 at 18:50 MST. It registered a magnitude of 8.0 on the surface-wave magnitude scale and had a maximum perceived intensity of X (Extreme) on the Mercalli intensity scale.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1819 Rann of Kutch earthquake</span> Earthquake and tsunami in Gujarat, India

The 1819 Rann of Kutch earthquake occurred at about 18:45 to 18:50 local time on 16 June 1819. It had an estimated magnitude ranging from 7.7 to 8.2 on the moment magnitude scale and a maximum perceived intensity of XI (Extreme) on the Mercalli intensity scale. It triggered a tsunami and caused at least 1,543 deaths. The earthquake caused an area of subsidence that formed the Sindri Lake and a local zone of uplift to the north about 80 km (50 mi) long, 6 km (3.7 mi) wide and 6 m (20 ft) high that dammed the Koree / Kori / Puran / Nara river. This natural dam was known as the Allah Bund.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 Afghanistan earthquakes</span> Earthquakes in Afghanistan in 2012

On 11 June 2012, two moderate earthquakes struck northern Afghanistan, causing a large landslide. The landslide buried the town of Sayi Hazara, trapping 71 people. After four days of digging, only five bodies were recovered and the search was called off. Overall, 75 people were killed and 13 others were injured.

On January 30, 1973, at 15:01 (UTC–6), a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck 35.3 km (21.9 mi) beneath the Sierra Madre del Sur range in the Mexican states of Colima, Jalisco and Michoacán. On the Mercalli intensity scale, the earthquake reached a maximum intensity of X (Extreme), causing serious damage in the region. At least 56 people were killed and about 390 were injured. The event is commonly referred to as the Colima earthquake.

The 1983 Hindu Kush earthquake occurred south of Fayzabad, Badakhshan in northeast Afghanistan at 03:52 PST on December 31, 1983, near the border with Pakistan and the USSR. Striking 214.5 km beneath the Hindu Kush mountains, the moment magnitude 7.4 quake affected three countries, killing at least 26 people and injuring several hundred.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lenin Peak disaster</span> 1990 earthquake and subsequent avalanche in Tajikistan

The Lenin Peak disaster occurred on 13 July 1990 when 43 climbers were killed during an avalanche on the 7,134-meter-high mountain peak in northeast Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. The deadly avalanche was triggered by a moment magnitude scale 6.4 earthquake which struck at a depth of 216.8 km beneath the Hindu Kush mountains in neighbouring Afghanistan. The incident is believed to be the deadliest mountaineering disaster in history.

The 1909 Benavente earthquake occurred on 23 April at 17:39:36 local in the Santarém District of the Central Region, Portugal. The estimated moment magnitude 6.0–6.3 earthquake had a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). It nearly destroyed the town of Benavente, killing 60 and injuring 75 people as a result.

The 1950 Calama earthquake occurred near the Argentina–Chile border with an epicenter near Calama, Chile in the Atacama Desert on December 9. The event had a hypocenter depth of 113.9 km, beneath the Caichinque volcanic complex. It measured magnitude Mw  8.2 on the moment magnitude scale, making it the largest intermediate depth earthquake ever recorded on Chilean soil. One person was killed and an unspecified number of people were injured in Calama.

The city of Blida in Algeria was struck by a major earthquake on 2 March 1825. It had an estimated magnitude of 7.0 Mw and a maximum felt intensity of X (Extreme) on the Modified Mercalli scale. It caused almost the complete destruction of Blida and led to the deaths of at least 6,000 of the inhabitants.

The 1991 Hindu Kush earthquake severely affected Afghanistan, Pakistan and the USSR on 1 February. It was an intermediate-depth earthquake with a hypocenter 143.2 km (89.0 mi) beneath the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan. The shock measured 6.8 on the moment magnitude scale and had a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). The reverse-faulting earthquake occurred in a seismically active region associated with faulting within a deforming oceanic plate at depth.

On 21 March 2023, a magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Badakhshan Province, Afghanistan, with an intermediate depth of approximately 187 km (116 mi). The epicenter of the earthquake was 40 km (25 mi) south-southeast of Jurm.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "M7.4 – Hindu Kush region, Afghanistan". United States Geological Survey.
  2. 1 2 3 "M6.1 – Hindu Kush region, Afghanistan". United States Geological Survey.
  3. ↑ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service (NGDC/WDS) (1972), Significant Earthquake Database (Data Set), National Geophysical Data Center, NOAA, doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K
  4. 1 2 Zhan, Z.; Kanamori, H. (2016). "Recurring large deep earthquakes in Hindu Kush driven by a sinking slab". Geophysical Research Letters. 43 (14): 7433–7441. Bibcode:2016GeoRL..43.7433Z. doi:10.1002/2016GL069603. S2CID   31948667.
  5. ↑ Ambraseys, N.N.; Bilham, R. (2003). "Earthquakes in Afghanistan". Seismological Research Letters. 74 (2): 107–123. Bibcode:2003SeiRL..74..107A. doi:10.1785/gssrl.74.2.107. S2CID   130945532.
  6. ↑ Yeats, Robert S.; Madden, Christopher (2003). "Damage from the Nahrin, Afghanistan, Earthquake of 25 March 2002". Seismological Research Letters. 74 (3): 305–311. Bibcode:2003SeiRL..74..305Y. doi:10.1785/gssrl.74.3.305.

Sources

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.