| 2001 Gujarat Earthquake |
Article Index for 2001 |
Shopping 2001 |
Website Links For 2001 |
Information About2001 Gujarat Earthquake |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT 2001 GUJARAT EARTHQUAKE | |
| 2001 earthquakes | |
| gujarat earthquake | |
| 2001 in india | |
| ahmedabad | |
| gujarat earthquake, 2001 | |
| earthquakes in india | |
| history of gujarat | |
|
The earthquake is considered an Intraplate Earthquake because it occurred a great distance from any plate boundary, where the theory of Plate Tectonics says most earthquakes of this size happen. Because of this, this area was not completely prepared for an earthquake of such size, causing much of the devastation. THE EARTHQUAKE It occurred on a holiday in India, the 51st celebration of Republic Day . The epicentre of this quake was 23.6 North Latitude and 69.8 East Longitude, 20 kilometres northeast of Bhuj. The tremors were felt in major parts of the country, all the way to Mumbai , Ahmedabad and Surat . Although the official reading of this quake was 6.9 on the Richter Scale , some Western institutes reported a magnitude up to 7.9, ten times greater. THE DAMAGE Because of its size and location, this quake was very destructive in terms of lives lost and damage to property. All the deaths occurred in India'a western state of Gujarat, near the Pakistan border. Bhuj, a coastal resort only 20 kilometers (14 miles) from the epicenter, was the most devastated town. As many as 20,000 people were reported dead. As of February 3 , the official toll had climbed to more than 30,000, though it later fell to 19,727. The final death toll may never be known with certainty. At least 150,000 more were reported injured. This too may be an underestimate. Over a million structures were damaged or destroyed, including many historic buildings and tourist attractions. The quake destroyed 90 percent of the homes in Bhuj, several schools, and flattened the hospital. Considerable damage occurred also at Bhachau. In Ahmedabad, Gujarat's commercial capital and a city of 4.5 million, as many as 50 multistory buildings collapsed and several hundred people were killed. Total property damage was estimated at $5.5 billion and rising. EXTERNAL LINKS
|
|
|