1978 Tabas earthquake

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On 16th September, 1978, a huge earthquake struck, measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale. The death toll was around 26000 and the worst damage was to the town Tabas, which was at the epicentre of the quake and completely flattened. 40 villages within a 30 mile radius were damaged. 11,000 of the 13,000 population were killed, leaving only 2,000 living in the town. All the town's doctors were reported to have died, leaving civilians to treat others. All water and electricity was cut from Tabas, along with phone lines. The nearest accessible place to gain water was the town of Mashad, a nine hour drive away.

The earthquake lasted around three minutes, making it extremely dangerous. If you compare it to the normal 10 - 20 seconds that a normal earthquake lasts for, it shows how powerful it was. It struck at 19:38 local time. After the quake, there was lots of disease from dead bodies so many bodies were not buried in a cemetery but buried where they were found.