1897 Assam earthquake

Earthquake in India

1897 Assam earthquake

Local date| 12 June 1897 (1897-06-12)
Magnitude| 8.2–8.3[1] Mw
Depth| 34 km
Epicenter| 26°00′N 90°42′E﻿ / ﻿26.0°N 90.7°E﻿ / 26.0; 90.7[2]
Areas affected| India, Bhutan, Bangladesh
Max. intensity| X (Extreme)[3]
Casualties| 1,542[4]
Map showing the epicentre and the areas affected by the 1897 earthquake[5]

The Assam earthquake of 1897 occurred on 12 June 1897, in Assam, British India at 11:06[2] UTC, and had an estimated moment magnitude of 8.2–8.3.[1] It resulted in approximately 1,542 human casualties and caused catastrophic damage to infrastructures. Damage from the earthquake extended into Calcutta, where dozens of buildings were severely damaged, with some buildings partially collapsing. Trembles were felt across India, reaching as far as Ahmedabad and Peshawar. Seiches were also observed in Burma.[4]

## Earthquake[edit]

The earthquake occurred on the south–southwest-dipping reverse Oldham Fault that forms the northern edge of the Shillong Plateau.[2][6][7] There was a minimum displacement on the main fault of 11 m, although some calculations have placed this figure at as high as 16 m; one of the greatest for any measured earthquake.[6] The calculated area of slip extended 180 km along the strike and from 9–45 km beneath the surface, indicating that the entire thickness of the crust was involved.

## Damage[edit]

Government House in Shillong before and after the earthquake[5]

Thought to have happened 32 km beneath the surface, the earthquake left masonry buildings in ruins over 400,000 km2 area and was felt over 650,000 km2 from Burma to Delhi. Numerous buildings in the neighboring country of Bhutan were heavily damaged.[8] Dozens of aftershocks were felt in and around the region with the last event being felt on 9 October 1897 at 01:40 UT in Calcutta.[4]

The earthquake resulted in Shillong Plateau being thrust violently upwards by about 11 meters. The fault was about 110 km in length while the fault slip was about 18 m (accuracy more or less by 7 m). At the epicenter, vertical acceleration is thought to have been greater than 1g and the surface velocity estimated at 3 m/s.[6]

Earthquake damage to a bridge on the East Bengal Railway[5]

In Shillong, the earthquake damaged every stone house and half the houses built of wood.[5]: 5 The shock leveled the ground and resulted in 13 deaths. The fissure was also reported in the area. In Sohra Cherrapunji, it resulted in a landslide, which led to 600 deaths.[9] In Goalpara, it resulted in waves from the Brahmaputra River, on which bank the town is situated on, destroying the market.[9] In Nalbari, there were reported sightings of earth-waves and water waves. In Guwahati, the earthquake lasted for 3 minutes. the Brahmaputra river rose by 7.6 ft. Damage was caused to Umananda Island temple and railway lines, where five people died.[9] In Nagaon, every brick house was damaged, while traditional houses made of wood, with grass roofs, were bent. There were many small fissures/volcanos and the road was impassable for vehicles.[9]

In the Sylhet region, shocks took place at 16:30 local time, according to villagers living at the foot of the hills north of Sunamganj. There were 545 casualties; 55 in Sylhet town; 178 in North Sylhet; 287 in Sunamganj; seven in Habiganj; eight in South Sylhet and 10 in Karimganj. Many building collapses, fissures and drownings furthered the number of deaths. A woman in Sunamganj is said to have fallen through a fissure whilst on a river with her husband. The husband tried to hold onto her hair but lost hold of her. The woman's body was not recovered from the crevasse. The Assam Bengal Railway was severely damaged.[10][11][5]: 295–298

Richard Dixon Oldham, the Superintendent of the Geological Survey of India, analysed seismic records of the earthquake, mainly from stations in Italy, and reported the first clear evidence of different type of seismic waves, travelling through the earth on different paths and at different speeds.[5]: 227–256

## See also[edit]

* 1905 Kangra earthquake
* List of earthquakes in India
* List of historical earthquakes

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b England, Philip; Bilham, Roger (2015). "The Shillong Plateau and the great 1897 Assam earthquake". Tectonics. 34 (9): 1792–1812. Bibcode:2015Tecto..34.1792E. doi:10.1002/2015TC003902. S2CID 92991659.
2. ^ a b c Subedi, Shiba; Hetényi, György (2021). "Precise Locating of the Great 1897 Shillong Plateau Earthquake Using Teleseismic and Regional Seismic Phase Data". The Seismic Record. 1 (3): 135–144. Bibcode:2021SeisR...1..135S. doi:10.1785/0320210031. S2CID 244456016.
3. ^ National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service (NGDC/WDS) (1972), "Significant Earthquake Information", NCEI/WDS Global Significant Earthquake Database (Data Set), National Geophysical Data Center, NOAA, doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K, retrieved 2 August 2022
4. ^ a b c "Documentation on past disasters, their impact, Measures taken, vulnerable areas in Assam" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 July 2015. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
5. ^ a b c d e f Oldham, R. D. (1899). "Report of the great earthquake of 12th June, 1897". Memoirs of the Geological Society of India. K. Paul, Trench, Trübner & co. 29.
6. ^ a b c Bilham, Roger; England, Philip (2001). "Plateau 'pop-up' in the great 1897 Assam earthquake". Nature. 410 (6830): 806–809. Bibcode:2001Natur.410..806B. doi:10.1038/35071057. PMID 11298446. S2CID 205015797.
7. ^ Hough, S.E.; Bilham, R.; Ambraseys, N.; Feldl, N. (2005). "Revisiting the 1897 Shillong and 1905 Kangra earthquakes in northern India: Site response, Moho reflections and a triggered earthquake" (PDF). Current Science. 88 (10): 1632–1638. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 December 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
8. ^ Kalita, Jugal. "The Great Assam Earthquake of 1897". Assam Portal.
9. ^ a b c d "The Great Assam Earthquake of 1897 | Assam Portal".
10. ^ B C Allen (1905). "Physical Aspects". Assam District Gazetteers: Sylhet. Vol. 2\. Calcutta: Government of Assam. pp. 13–16.
11. ^ Anderson, Francis Philip (1900). "The effects of the earthquake in 1897 on the Shaistaganj division of the Assam-Bengal Railway". Minutes of the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers. 141 (1900): 258–261. doi:10.1680/imotp.1900.18693.

## Further reading[edit]

* Ambraseys, N. N.; Douglas, J. (1 October 2004). "Magnitude calibration of north Indian earthquakes". Geophysical Journal International. 159 (1): 165–206. Bibcode:2004GeoJI.159..165A. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2004.02323.x. ISSN 0956-540X.
* Gahalaut, V. K.; Chander, R. (1992). "A Rupture Model for the Great Earthquake of 1897, Northeast India". Tectonophysics. 204 (1–2): 163–174. Bibcode:1992Tectp.204..163G. doi:10.1016/0040-1951(92)90277-D.
* Lee, W. H. K.; Meyers, M.; Shimazaki, N. (1988). Historical Seismograms and Earthquakes of the World. San Diego: Academic Press. ISBN 978-0-12-440870-8.

## External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 1897 Assam earthquake.

* Tom LaTouche and the Great Assam Earthquake of 12 June 1897: Letters from the Epicenter (with photographs of damage at Shillong, Rowmari and Calcutta, detailed field report with diagrams, and mapping of the epicentre)

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Earthquakes in 1890s

1891|

* Mino–Owari (8.0, Oct 28) †‡

1892|

* Laguna Salada (7.3, Feb 23)
* Catamarca (6.0, Mar 21) ‡
* Vacaville–Winters (6.4 & 6.2, Apr 19 & 21)

1893|

* Malatya (7.1, Mar 3) †
* Quchan (6.6, Apr 18) †‡

1894|

* Atalanti (6.7 & 6.9, Apr 20 & 27) †
* Tokyo (6.6, Jun 20) †
* Istanbul (7.0, Jul 10) †‡
* Shōnai (7.0, Oct 22) †
* San Juan (7.5, Oct 27) †

1895|

* Quchan (6.8, Jan 17) †‡
* Carniola (6.1, Apr 14)
* Charleston (5.8, Oct 31)

1896|

* Sanriku (8.5, Jun 15) †‡
* Akita–Iwate (7.2, Aug 31) †

1897|

* Assam (8.0, Jun 12) †‡
* Mindanao (7.4 & 7.5, Sep 20 & 21) †

1898|

* Balıkesir (7.0, Jan 29) †‡
* San Francisco (6.2, Mar 30)

1899|

* Yakutat Bay
* Aydın–Denizli ‡
* Ceram ‡
* San Jacinto

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Earthquakes in India

Historical|

* 1505 Lo Mustang
* 1555 Kashmir
* 1803 Garhwal
* 1819 Rann of Kutch
* 1833 Kathmandu–Bihar
* 1869 Cachar
* 1881 Nicobar Islands
* 1885 Kashmir
* 1897 Assam

20th century|

* 1905 Kangra
* 1930 Dhubri
* 1934 Nepal–India
* 1935 Quetta
* 1941 Andaman Islands
* 1947 Assam
* 1950 Assam–Tibet
* 1956 Anjar
* 1967 Koynanagar
* 1975 Kinnaur
* 1980 Pithoragarh
* 1984 Cachar
* 1988 Myanmar–India
* 1988 Nepal
* 1991 Uttarkashi
* 1993 Latur
* 1997 Jabalpur
* 1997 Chittagong
* 1999 Chamoli

21st century|

* 2001 Gujarat
* 2004 Indian Ocean
* 2005 Kashmir
* 2009 Andaman Islands
* 2011 Sikkim
* April 2015 Nepal
* May 2015 Nepal
* October 2015 Hindu Kush
* 2016 Imphal
* 2016 Sagaing
* 2016 Magway
* 2017 Tripura
* 2017 Uttarakhand
* 2021 Assam
* 2022 Nepal
* 2023 Badakhshan
* 2023 Nepal

Related topics|

* Earthquake zones of India
* Geology of the Himalaya

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Himalayan earthquakes

Notable Himalayan quakes|

* 1505 Lo Mustang
* 1555 Kashmir
* 1714 Bhutan
* 1803 Garhwal
* 1833 Kathmandu–Bihar
* 1885 Kashmir
* 1897 Assam
* 1905 Kangra
* 1934 Bihar
* 1947 Assam
* 1950 Assam–Tibet
* 1980 Nepal
* 1988 Myanmar-India
* 1988 Nepal
* 1991 Uttarkashi
* 1999 Chamoli
* 2005 Kashmir
* 2008 Damxung
* 2009 Bhutan
* 2011 Sikkim
* April 2015 Nepal
* May 2015 Nepal
* 2021 Assam

Plate tectonics|

* Geology of the Himalayas
* Indian Plate
* Eurasian Plate
* Oldham Fault
* Main Frontal Thrust
* Main Himalayan Thrust
* Main Central Thrust
* South Tibetan Detachment
* North Himalayan Normal Fault

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