India Earthquake

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Posting Date: January 25, 2001, 10:30:00 PM

A major earthquake shook the Indian subcontinent on Friday, January 26, 2001, at 8:46 a.m. local time (03:16 GMT). Officials are anticipating a death toll of 1,000 or more. The quake had a preliminary surface magnitude of 7.9 and a calculated moment magnitude of 7.5. Focal depth was about 23 km (14 miles), according to preliminary estimates by the US Geological Survey. The epicenter was in the western Indian province of Gujurat, about 110 km (65 miles) north-northeast of Jamnagar. The quake was felt from Kathmandu in Nepal to Chennai (Madras) in the south of India. This earthquake occurred in the Indian Shield region, which is marked by several rift and shear/thrust zones. In the past, this region has experienced many large earthquakes of magnitude greater than 6. The well-known Kutch earthquake of 1819, which had an estimated magnitude of 7.8 and caused 2,000 deaths, was located near the epicenter of today's earthquake. The worst damage occurred 20 km southwest of the epicenter in the coastal town of Bhuj, a town of about 150,000, where virtually all homes were damaged and at least 10 percent of the buildings collapsed. At least 500 buildings are reported to have collapsed in the commercial center Ahmedabad, which has a population of about 7 million. There are also reports of mine cave-ins, train derailments, broken water pipes and downed power and phone lines. At least four people are known dead in neighboring Pakistan. AIR will continue to monitor events in this area and will post additional information as necessary.

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Posting Date: January 25, 2001, 10:30:00 PM