1784 Erzincan earthquake

1784 Erzincan earthquake

Local date	18 July 1784 (1784-07-18)
Magnitude	7.6 Ms[1]
Epicenter	39°30′N 40°12′E / 39.5°N 40.2°E / 39.5; 40.2[1]
Fault	North Anatolian Fault[2]
Type	Strike-slip[2]
Areas affected	Erzincan Ottoman Empire
Casualties	5,000[3]–>10,000 dead[4]

Erzincan in Turkey, then part of the Ottoman Empire, was struck by a major earthquake on 18 July 1784. It caused widespread damage between Erzincan and Muş. It had an estimated magnitude of 7.6 M_s. More than 90% of the houses in Erzincan collapsed and at least 5,000 people died,^[3] with some reports of more than 10,000 deaths.^[4] A 150 km long zone of surface rupture was observed.^[1] It ruptured the Yedisu segment at the eastern end of the North Anatolian Fault, which has not ruptured since then and is now regarded as a seismic gap. In 2013 it was estimated that about 2.67 m of displacement deficit has accumulated on this fault segment since 1784, sufficient to drive an earthquake of up to M_w7.5.^[2]