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1790 Oran earthquake
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Seismic event in Algeria
April 2024
1790 Oran earthquake yes 10 October 1790 Algeria unk 6.0–6.5 35.9 N 0.6 W inline,title Algeria, Spain and Tunisia VIII – 10 Minor 3,000 dead
The 1790 Oran earthquake occurred on 10 October, striking near the coastal city of Oran in Algeria. The earthquake had an evaluated maximum seismic intensity of VIII–X on the European macroseismic scale (EMS-98). An estimated 3,000 people died during the earthquake and accompanying tsunami.Significant Earthquake Information https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/hazel/view/hazards/earthquake/event-more-info/1504 ngdc.noaa.gov NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information 10 October 2021
The magnitude of this earthquake has been disputed among members of the paleoseismology field, with estimates ranging from 7.5 to even as small as 5.5.
Impact
Beginning on 8 October, the Spanish-conquered city was rocked by a series of strong earthquakes which were felt as far as Spain and Malta. The earthquakes were felt by residents in Granada, Cartagena, Málaga, and Santa Fe. Violent shaking was felt at Oran until 25 October. Major damage occurred in Oran, with much of the historic city destroyed. Reports of damage also came from Carthage, Tunisia, and Spain across the Mediterranean Sea.
On the morning of 10 October, at 01:15 local time, the most violent shock razed many homes in Oran to the ground, trapping 1,000 people. Multiple shocks occurred in the aftermath, causing destruction and killing many. Landslides were triggered, spilling debris into the city. Modern construction, and a fortress in the city remained intact after the shocks, and no damage was reported outside Oran.Redouane Chimouni Assia Harbi Mohamed Salah Boughacha Mouloud Hamidatou Radia Kherchouche Amal Sebaï The 1790 Oran Earthquake, a Seismic Event in Times of Conflict along the Algerian Coast: A Critical Review from Western and Local Source Materials Seismological Research Letters 2018 89 6 2392–2403 10.1785/0220180175 2018SeiRL..89.2392C 134010088 https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/ssa/srl/article-abstract/89/6/2392/547141/The-1790-Oran-Earthquake-a-Seismic-Event-in-Times?redirectedFrom=fulltext subscription
According to the Gazeta de Madrid, over 250 soldiers were among the 3,000 killed, while some sources suggest up to 600 died. An alcazaba sustained severely, killing a commander general and his daughter. A number of high-ranking military officials were killed by collapsing structures.MAYO: EL TERREMOTO DE ORÁN DE 1790 Y EL LARGO VIAJE DE LOS DOCUMENTOS MAY: THE ORAN EARTHQUAKE OF 1790 AND THE LONG JOURNEY OF THE DOCUMENTS https://www.elche.es/2019/05/mayo-el-terremoto-de-oran-de-1790-y-el-largo-viaje-de-los-documentos/ Ayuntamiento de Elche 2 May 2019 10 October 2021 Spanish At least 86 prisoners, and 23 prison officials died when a jail collapsed. Half of the inmate population managed to escape.Paco Almanzor El terremoto de Orán de octubre de 1790 The Oran earthquake of October 1790 https://laqverna.wordpress.com/2016/10/09/el-terrible-terremoto-de-oran-de-octubre-de-1790/ La Qverna 10 October 2021 9 October 2016
Because the city streets were narrow, many survivors gathered at an open space right after the quake. Looting of personal belongings took place in the ruined city. In response, the colonial authorities announced capital punishment for anyone caught. Aid was provided to the survivors one week later, which included tents, food, and medical assistance. The governor of Oran was appointed by Charles IV of Spain to write a report on the earthquake a few days later. Damage to Oran and neighboring Mazalquivir were so severe that the Spanish Empire eventually left the cities in 1792 because repair works were not viable. Many of the Spanish residents in Algeria resettled in Ceuta.EL TERREMOTO DE ORÁN DE 1790 Y EL FIN DE LA PRESENCIA ESPAÑOLA EN ARGELIA. THE ORAN EARTHQUAKE OF 1790 AND THE END OF THE SPANISH PRESENCE IN ALGERIA. https://historiasdealboran.wordpress.com/2021/06/01/el-terremoto-de-oran-de-1790-y-el-fin-de-la-presencia-espanola-en-argelia/ HISTORIAS DE ALBORÁN 10 October 2021 1 June 2021
Tsunami
A notable tsunami was triggered during the quake, and witnessed by many at the coast. Sailors on ships were thrown overboard when the strong waves struck. Many residents ran from the coast as the tsunami approached. The waves inundated the coasts of North Africa, but no disturbance of the sea was reported in Morocco.Tsunami Event Information Tsunami Event Information https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/hazel/view/hazards/tsunami/event-more-info/3075 ngdc.noaa.gov NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information 10 October 2021
Boats were taken from ports and drifted away. Small waves also struck the Iberian Peninsula in Almeria and Cartagena, wherein the latter location, the sea level rose by up to 6 feet.
Tectonic setting
The nation of Algeria lies near a complex and poorly defined convergent plate boundary separating the African plate from the Eurasian plate.A. Leprêtre F. Klingelhoefer D. Graindorge P. Schnurle M. O. Beslier K. Yelles J. Déverchère R. Bracene Multiphased tectonic evolution of the Central Algerian margin from combined wide-angle and reflection seismic data off Tipaza, Algeria Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 2013 118 8 3899–3916 10.1002/jgrb.50318 2013JGRB..118.3899L 53588905 free
The converging plates create a zone of compression in northern Algeria, which are accommodated by mainly thrust and reverse faults onshore and inland. Thrusting of strata due to compression formed the Atlas Mountains in Algeria and Morocco. The tectonic situation of Algeria also makes the country vulnerable to large and deadly seismic events with magnitudes greater than 6.0. The offshore thrust faults also pose a tsunami threat to the Algerian coast during large earthquakes.Abdelkarim Yelles-Chaouche Abdelaziz Kherroubi Hamoud Beldjoudi The large Algerian earthquakes (267 A.D.-2017) Física de la tierra 2017 29 10.5209/FITE.57617 Universidad Complutense de Madrid 1988-2440 free
Earthquake
Previous studies of earthquakes in Algeria and on this particular event have assigned the maximum seismic intensity at IX–X on the MSK-64, EMS-98 and Mercalli scales. Based on inferring the historical descriptions of the event, Oran was assigned IX–X, while intensities IV–V was felt in Almeria and Cartagena (IV). At Mers-El-Kébir, the felt intensity was IV–V based on literature reviews. A re-evaluation of more recent literature describing the earthquake suggests the intensity was only VIII. The severe damage which occurred was due to poor construction practices. The intensity most likely did not achieve IX level because at Mers-El-Kébir, a mere 8 km from Oran did not report any damage suggesting the intensity was weaker than previously thought. In a 2019 journal, the authors assigned the coastal areas of Oran, where the greatest damage was reported, intensity IX–X. Intensity IX–X was inferred from original Spanish documents describing the effects of the earthquake.
The high intensity shaking and tsunami generation is due to the shallow hypocenter depth and offshore epicenter location.E. Buforn P. Coca M. Bezzeghoud A. Udías Y. Bouhadad M. Mattesini The destructive 1790 Oran (NW Algeria) earthquake in a region of low seismicity Tectonophysics 2019 759 1–14 10.1016/j.tecto.2019.03.008 2019Tectp.759....1B 134205450 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0040195119300800#! subscription According to Pedro María Legallois Grimarest, a military officer, the tremors began with the vertical movement of the ground and was followed by shaking in the southwest–northeast direction. This would suggest the earthquake rupture consisted of two sub-events on a reverse fault. The northwest coast of Oran hosts a reverse fault offshore which may be the source of the quake and tsunami. The source fault may be one that stretches from the sea to onshore. Based on considering the damage and tsunami, a seismic magnitude of 6.0–6.5 has been proposed for the event.
Other events
On 6 June 2008, a wc 5.5 earthquake struck off the coast of Oran with a maximum felt intensity of VII on the EMS-98 scale or VI on the Mercalli.M 5.5 – 17 km NNE of Mers el Kebir, Algeria https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usp000g8r4/executive United States Geological Survey 10 October 2021 The earthquake killed one person and caused dozens of injuries. The moment tensor solution indicated reverse faulting at a shallow depth with an epicenter offshore. The faults offshore are activated by northwest–southeast compression as a result of the Africa-Eurasia convergence in the Mediterranean.A. Benfedda Y. Bouhadad M.S. Boughacha N. Guessoum K. Abbes M. Bezzeghoud The Oran January 9th (Mw 4.7) and June 6th, 2008 (Mw 5.4) earthquakes: Seismological study and seismotectonic implication Journal of African Earth Sciences 2020 169 103896 10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2020.103896 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1464343X20301473 Elsevier 2020JAfES.16903896B 219506914 subscription
See also
List of earthquakes in Algeria
List of historical earthquakes
References
Category:1790s earthquakes
Category:Earthquakes in Algeria
Category:18th-century tsunamis
Category:1790 in Africa
Category:1790 in the Spanish Empire
Category:History of Oran
Category:Earthquakes in Spain
Category:1790 disasters
Category:Earthquake clusters, swarms, and sequences
Category:Tsunamis in Algeria
Category:1790 disasters in Africa