1977 Vrancea earthquake

1977 Vrancea earthquake
Date Friday, 4 March 1977
Origin time 19:21:54.3 (UTC)
Duration 55 seconds
Magnitude 7.2 Mw
Depth 91 km[1]
Epicenter 45°46′N 26°46′E / 45.77°N 26.76°ECoordinates: 45°46′N 26°46′E / 45.77°N 26.76°E
Areas affected Romania
Bulgaria
Soviet Union
Moldavian SSR
Ukrainian SSR
Total damage US$ 2.048 billion
Max. intensity IX (violent)
Landslides Yes
Casualties 1,578 dead, 11,221 injured in Romania
120 dead, 165 injured in Bulgaria
2 dead in Moldova
Bucharest – Enei Church – 1977

The 1977 Vrancea earthquake occurred on Friday, 4 March 1977, 21:20 local time and was felt throughout the Balkans. It had a magnitude of 7.2 with an epicenter in Vrancea (in the Eastern Carpathians) at a depth of 94 kilometers (58 mi).

The earthquake killed about 1,578 people (1,424 in Bucharest) in Romania, and wounded more than 11,300.[2] Among the victims were actor Toma Caragiu and writers A. E. Bakonsky, Alexandru Ivasiuc and Corneliu M. Popescu. Communist ruler Nicolae Ceaușescu suspended his official visit to Nigeria and declared state of emergency.

About 35,000 buildings were damaged, and the total damage was estimated at more than two billion dollars. Most of the damage was concentrated in Romania's capital, Bucharest, where about 33 large buildings collapsed. Most of those buildings were built before World War II, and were not reinforced. After the earthquake, the Romanian government imposed tougher construction standards.

In Bulgaria, the earthquake is known as the Vrancea earthquake or Svishtov earthquake. Three blocks of flats in the Bulgarian town of Svishtov (near Zimnicea) collapsed, killing more than 100 people. Many other buildings were damaged, including the Church of the Holy Trinity. In the Soviet Republic of Moldova the earthquake destroyed and damaged many buildings. In the capital Kishinev, a panic broke out.

Damage and casualties

The earthquake of 4 March 1977 was one of the worst earthquake disasters of the 1970s around the world. It caused the loss of 1,578 lives and injured an additional 11,221,[3] with 90% of the fatalities being in the capital city Bucharest. The reported damages included 32,897 collapsed or demolished dwellings, 34,582 homeless families, 763 industrial units affected and many other damages in all sectors of the economy.[3] A 1978 World Bank report estimated a total loss of US$2.048 billion, with Bucharest accounting for 70% of the total, i.e. US$1.4 billion. According to this report, out of Romania's 40 counties, 23 were strongly affected.[3]

Preliminary estimates of the intensity of shaking in various parts of Romania[4]
Intensity of shaking Location Epicentral distance Focal distance1
V Brașov 91 143
VI Vrâncioaia 2 110
VI–VII Craiova
Galați 		288
112 		308
157
VII–VIII Alexandria
Buzău
Focșani
Ploiești
Zimnicea 		234
80
39
115
268 		259
136
117
159
290
VII–IX Bucharest 166 199

1Based on focal depth of 110 km

Bucharest

A number of 32 buildings of 8–12 storey collapsed in the central part of city, while about 150 old buildings of 4–6 storey high were strongly damaged. Almost all the collapsed buildings had been built between 1920 and 1940 without earthquake resistant design.[5] There was also the collapse of 3 public buildings (Ministry of Metallurgy, Faculty of Chemistry and Computer Centre) that due to the time of occurrence were not heavily occupied.[6] On 5 March, the first toll of the disaster indicates 508 fatalities and 2,600 injuries.[7] A final toll showed that 90% of the victims were from Bucharest: 1,424 deaths and 7,598 injuries.[8][9]

No critical fires occurred, but electrical power was lost in large areas of the city for about a day. Nine of 35 hospitals were evacuated.

Other Romanian cities

In the cities of Focșani and Buzău, unreinforced masonry walls in low-rise construction collapsed partially or totally, and there were signs of movement between structural elements and adjacent masonry in-fill walls in recently constructed engineered buildings.

The city of Zimnicea was reported in ruins: 175 houses collapsed, while 523 sustained serious damage, 4,000 people were displaced, and there were hundreds of victims.[7] Inasmuch as 80% of the city was destroyed, Zimnicea was rebuilt from the ground.[10] In Craiova, more than 550 buildings were severely damaged, among them the Museum of Art, the Oltenia Museum, the University and the County Library. Initial estimates indicate a total of 30 dead and 300 wounded.[7] Vaslui also suffered heavy losses, both human – 7 people dead, and material.[11]

In Ploiești around 200 homes were destroyed, and a further 2,000 were seriously damaged; the situation was also serious in Buzău County, where about 1,900 buildings were affected.[7] In Plopeni, a Worker's Dormitory made of masonry totally collapsed, killing 30 to 60 workers and injuring many.[6] Counties in Transylvania and Dobrogea showed no serious damage.

The earthquake induced geomorphological phenomena in southern, eastern and northern Wallachia, as well as southern Moldavia. These consisted in landslides, liquefaction, settlements, water spurting; in Vrancea Mountains, the course of Zăbala River was partially blocked, forming a small natural dam lake.[12]

Bulgaria

The earthquake of 4 March heavily impacted Bulgaria. The city of Svishtov was the most affected. Here, three blocks of flats collapsed, killing up to 120 people, among them 27 children.[13] Many other buildings were damaged, including the Church of the Holy Trinity.[14] In Ruse, the tremors were strong but there was little damage; only one person perished, hit by a huge architectural ornament that fell down from a nearby building.

Moldova

According to official data, 2,765 buildings were destroyed in the Moldavian SSR, while 20,763 buildings suffered more or less significant damage.[15][16]

Aftershocks

The earthquake epicenter was located in the south-west part of Vrancea County, the most active seismic area in Romania, at a depth of about 94 km (58 mi). The shock wave was felt in almost all countries in the Balkan Peninsula, as well as Soviet republics of Ukraine and Moldavia, albeit with a lower intensity. Seismic movement was followed by aftershocks of low magnitude. The strongest aftershock occurred on the morning of 5 March 1977, at 02:00 AM, at a depth of 109 km (68 mi), with a magnitude was 4.9 on the Richter scale. Other aftershocks' magnitudes did not exceed 4.3 or 4.5 Mw.[17]

Reactions of authorities

At the time of the earthquake, Nicolae and Elena Ceaușescu were on an official visit to Nigeria. Ceaușescu heard about the disaster in the country from a Romanian official.

Initially, news about the earthquake was confusing, and people talked about a much larger catastrophe. Due to a power failure in Bucharest, communication services weren't run for several hours. The population took to the streets, scared of possible aftershocks. At that moment, authorities had not taken any concrete steps.[18]

There were rescue teams from all blocks destroyed. Doctors, soldiers, men of different professions were presented at work. Nine hospitals were decommissioned. Floreasca Emergency Hospital in Bucharest, although seriously damaged, was taken by storm. Subsequently, it was evacuated. The Dinamo Stadium was turned into a triage point for the wounded. By the morning of March 5 work was underway on rehabilitating basic utilities – water, gas, telephony, electricity.[19]

The presidential couple and Romanian delegation in Nigeria returned to Romania during the night of 4–5 March 1977. Afterwards Nicolae Ceaușescu imposed a state of emergency throughout the country. In the following days, the Head of State conducted visits to Bucharest to assess damage.[20]

Teams of military and firefighters responsible for the rescue of possible survivors received aid from the Red Cross. They were joined by the Buftea film studio stuntsmen and many volunteers. Many people were rescued from the ruins, some after several days of being trapped.

Personalities killed in the earthquake

  • Anatol E. Baconsky, essayist, poet, novelist, publicist, literary theorist and translator
  • Doina Badea, pop music singer
  • Alexandru Bocăneț, film director
  • Savin Bratu, editor, critic and literary historian
  • Toma Caragiu, actor
  • Daniela Caurea, poet
  • Florin Ciorăscu, physicist and corresponding member of the Romanian Academy
  • Tudor Dumitrescu, pianist and composer of classical music
  • Mihai Gafița, critic, literary historian and writer
  • Despina Ghinokastra Istrati, painter and illustrator
  • Alexandru Ivasiuc, writer and novelist

  • Mihaela Mărăcineanu, mezzo-soprano and soloist of the Romanian Opera in Bucharest
  • Corina Nicolescu, curator and art historian
  • Mihail Petroveanu, critic and literary historian
  • Eliza Petrăchescu, actress
  • Liviu Popa, architect, illustrator and scenographer
  • Corneliu M. Popescu, translator
  • Veronica Porumbacu, poet, writer, memoirist, author of children's literature and translator
  • Ioan Siadbei, philologist and literary historian
  • Tudor Stavru, sportsman and stunt performer
  • Nicolae Vătămanu, doctor and photographer
  • Viorica Vizante, translator

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Cutremurul din 1977", Comunismul în România
  2. ↑ http://www.referat.ro/referate/Cutremurul_din_1977_38471.html
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Emil-Sever Georgescu, Antonios Pomonis (October 2008). "The Romanian earthquake of March 4, 1977 revisited: new insights into its territorial, economic and social impacts and their bearing on the preparedness for the future" (PDF). Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur.
  4. ↑ Earthquake in Romania, March 4, 1977: An Engineering Report. 1980. p. 15.
  5. ↑ "Se împlinesc 34 de ani de la marele cutremur din 1977". Ziare.com (in Romanian). 4 March 2011.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Vrancea Romania 1977 (CAR)". GEM Earthquake Consequences Database.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Cornel Ilie. "Cutremurul din 4 martie 1977 - 55 de secunde de coșmar". Historia.ro (in Romanian).
  8. ↑ Neculai Mândrescu, Mircea Radulian, Gheorghe Mărmureanu, Bogdan Grecu (16 October 2006). "Large Vrancea intermediate depth earthquakes and seismic microzonation of Bucharest urban area" (PDF). Horia Hulubei National Institute of Physics and Nuclear Engineering.
  9. ↑ Dan Lungu. "Seismic risk mitigation in the Romania - Synergy from international projects" (PDF). UNISDR.
  10. ↑ "RAPORT DE ȚARĂ. Orașul Zimnicea, reconstruit din temelii după cutremurul din 1977". Digi24 (in Romanian). 12 June 2013.
  11. ↑ "Cum a scăpat CEAUȘESCU de CUTREMURUL din 1977". Realitatea.net (in Romanian). 3 March 2012.
  12. ↑ "Cutremurul din 4 martie 1977". Cutremur.net (in Romanian). 3 March 2014.
  13. ↑ "Svishtov commemorates memory of 1977 earthquake victims". Radio Bulgaria. 4 March 2012.
  14. ↑ "Cutremurul din 4 martie 1977 - 37 de ani de la seismul care a făcut peste 1.500 de morți. Înregistrare audio realizată în timpul cutremurului". Gândul (in Romanian). 4 March 2013.
  15. ↑ Antoseac, G.; Grosulea, I. (1978). Atlasul R.S.S.M. (in Romanian). Academy of Sciences of MSSR.
  16. ↑ Bulletin of the Institute of Geology and Seismology of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova (in Romanian) (2). 2006.
  17. ↑ http://www.ziare.com/articole/cutremurul+din+1977
  18. ↑ "5 martie 1977, la o zi după cutremur", Museum of Photography
  19. ↑ "CUTREMURUL DIN 4 MARTIE 1977 (video «În premieră», TVR, plus alte mărturii)", Război întru Cuvânt
  20. ↑ "4 martie 1977, ziua în care România a fost zguduită", Jurnalul.ro
  21. ↑ IMDb, "Sweet and Bitter"
  22. ↑ 30 de ani de la marea zguduială, Florentina Stoian, Adevărul, 3 March 2007

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