A tsunami that caused thousands of dead

He Magnitude earthquake 8.8 Registered this morning on the Kamchatka Peninsula, it reminded many of the earthquake and subsequent Tsunami that devastated a segment of the Japanese western coast in 2011. However, to find a precedent closer to the recent event we have to go back further in time, as of November of the year 1952.

Some precedents. Specifically to November 4, 1952at 18:58, Spanish peninsular time, 3:58 am in the Kamchatka Peninsula. It is estimated that this day, the failure that separates the Pacific and North America plates slid generating an earthquake of magnitude 9.0 (it must be taken into account that the logarithmic nature of the scale implies that the difference between both events could be remarkable).

The event happened almost 73 years ago is maintained as the largest earthquake recorded in the region, although the archives of the United States Geological Service (USGS) also highlight an earthquake that occurred in 1923 that reached magnitude 8.4.

Both the Today’s earthquake Like 1952 they had their OSONRO EPICENTROS (At a distance of only 30 kilometers from each other), unlike the one that occurred in 1923, whose epicenter was in the coast of the Peninsula.

The consequences of an earthquake. The 1952 earthquake was not only the largest registered in the region, it was also the fifth largest earthquake measured by the instruments of the geologists. This event also unleashed a powerful tsunami with waves of up to 12 meters captured on the nearby Paramushir Island.

The NCEI records (National Centers for Environmental Information), body responsible for preserving data and geophysical information of US institutions, indicate that the 1952 event cost the lives of between 4,000 and 14,000 people, with estimates that place the number in about 10,000 deaths.

Despite its magnitude, there is no direct record of direct damages cause of the earth movement in itself. As on other occasions, it was the posterior tsunami that wreaked havoc: the estimates of the NCEI indicate that 99% of the victims of the event would have died as a result of the tsunami.

More than earthquakes. Kamchatka is a geologically active region. In the environment in which the earthquakes of 1952 and this year were given, the Pacific plaque moves in the west-northwest direction, at a speed of about 80 mm a year with respect to the North American plate. This implies that between the two earthquakes the plates moved about six meters, Remember the USGS.

Proof of the geological activity of the region are also the numerous volcanoes located in the Peninsula. The volcanoes of the region They are still active (As you have seen during the last incident), but also make up an interesting ecosystem that led Unesco to include them in your list of the World Heritage.

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Image | USGS / US Navy