Yungay landslide

The 1970 Ancash earthquake was an undersea earthquake that occurred at 20:23:31 UTC (15:23:31 local time) on Sunday, May 31, 1970, affecting the Peruvian regions of Ancash and La Libertad, and that combined with a subsequent landslide, was the most catastrophic natural disaster ever recorded in the history of Peru. Image File history File links Yungay_landslide. ... Image File history File links Yungay_landslide. ... An earthquake is a phenomenon that results from and is powered by the sudden release of stored energy in the crust that propagates seismic waves. ... ... May 31 is the 151st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (152nd in leap years), with 214 days remaining. ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ... See other Peruvian regions President Ricardo Narváez Soto Capital Huaraz Largest city Chimbote Area 35,039. ... La Libertad is a region in northwestern Peru. ... Landslide of soil and regolith in Pakistan A landslide is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement, such as rock falls, deep failure of slopes and shallow debris flows. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into List of wars and disasters by death toll. ... This is the history of Peru. ...

The epicenter of the earthquake was located 30 km off the coast of Casma and Chimbote on the Pacific Ocean, where the Nazca Plate is being subducted by the South American Plate. It had a magnitude of 7.9 on the Richter scale and an intensity of up to VIII on the Mercalli scale. The epicenter is directly above the earthquakes focus. ... Casma is a town in the Ancash Region, Peru. ... Chimbote is the largest city in the Ancash Region of Peru. ...  The Nacza plate, shown in light blue The Nazca Plate, named after the Nazca region of southern Peru, is an oceanic tectonic plate in the eastern Pacific Ocean basin off the west coast of South America. ... The South American Plate is a continental tectonic plate covering the continent of South America and extending eastward to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. ... The Richter magnitude test scale (or more correctly local magnitude ML scale) assigns a single number to quantify the size of an earthquake. ... The Mercalli Intensity Scale is a scale used to classify the intensity of an earthquake by examining its effects on people and structures at the Earths surface. ...

The earthquake lasted 45 seconds and destabilized the northern wall of Mount Huascarán, inducing a rock and snow avalanche and burying the towns of Yungay and Ranrahirca. The avalanche started as a sliding mass of glacial ice and rock about 3,000 feet wide and one mile long. It swept about 11 miles to the village of Yungay at an average speed of more than 100 miles per hour. The fast-moving mass picked up glacial deposits and by the time it reached Yungay, it is estimated to have consisted of about 80 million cubic yards (61,000,000 m³) of water, mud, and rocks. Huascarán or Nevado Huascarán is a mountain of the Cordillera Blanca, part of the Western Andes. ... A Himalayan avalanche. ... Yungay is a town in the Ancash Region in north central Peru, South America. ... A glacier is a large, long-lasting river of ice that is formed on land and moves in response to gravity and undergoes internal deformation. ... Deposit may refer to: Finance A deposit is a specific sum of money taken and held on account, by a bank as a service provided for its clients. ...

Casualties and damage

The reported death toll from the earthquake and avalanche totalled 47,194 persons, although some estimates place it as high as 66,000. About 19,600 went missing and 143,331 were injured. Over 500,000 people were left homeless. In Yungay, 17,000 persons died due to the landslide, and only 400 survived. Survivors included people who were at high points of the town, such as the cemetery, as well as children at a circus and 300 persons at the town stadium.

The earthquake affected an area of about 83,000 km², an area larger than Belgium and the Netherlands combined, in the north central coast and the Sierra (highlands) of the Ancash Region and southern La Libertad Region. See other Peruvian regions President Ricardo Narváez Soto Capital Huaraz Largest city Chimbote Area 35,039. ... La Libertad is a region in northwestern Peru. ...

It was a system-wide disaster, impacting such a widespread area that the regional infrastructure of communications, commerce, and transportation was destroyed. Economic losses surpassed half a billion dollars U.S.D.. Cities, towns, peasant villages as well as the homes, industries, public buildings, schools, electrical, water, sanitary, and communications facilities on them were seriously damaged or destroyed.

Areas hard hit were the coastal towns and cities of Chimbote (the largest city in Ancash), Casma, Supe, and Huarmey; but the Andean valley known as the Callejón de Huaylas suffered the most intense and sweeping damage, with the regional capital, Huaraz, as well as Caraz and Aija being partially destroyed. Trujillo, the nation's third largest city, and Huarmey suffered minor damages. Chimbote is the largest city in the Ancash Region of Peru. ... Casma is a town in the Ancash Region, Peru. ... Huarmey is a coastal town in the Ancash Region, Peru. ... The Andes form the longest mountain chain in the world. ... The Callejón de Huaylas (Alley of Huaylas) is a valley in the Ancash Region in the north-central highlands of Peru. ... Central plaza Huaraz is a city in central Peru. ... Caraz is a town in the Ancash Region, Peru. ... Aija may refer to the following: AIJA (Afghanistan) - Afghanistan Independent Journalists Association (AIJA) AIJA (Armenia) - Association of Investigative Journalists of Armenia (AIJA) AIJA (Lawyers) - International Association of Young Lawyers (Association Internationale des Jeunes Avocats) AIJA Aija Province - Province in the Ancash Region of Peru Aija (Peru) - Small town in the... Trujillo is a city in northwestern Peru. ... Huarmey is a coastal town in the Ancash Region, Peru. ...

In Chimbote, Carhuaz and Recuay, about 80% to 90% of buildings were destroyed, affecting about 3 million people. Carhuaz is a town in the Ancash Region, Peru. ... Recuay may refer to the following: Recuay - a small town in the Río Santa valley in northwestern central Peru Recuay Province - a province in the Ancash Region in northwestern central Peru Recuay Culture - a pre-Columbian culture in northwestern central Peru This is a disambiguation page: a list of...

The Pan-American highway was also damaged, which made the arrival of humanitarian aid difficult. The Cañón del Pato hydroelectricity generator was damaged by the Santa River and the railway connecting Chimbote with the Santa Valley was left unusable on 60% of its route. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Humanitarian aid arriving by plane at Rinas Airport in Albania in the summer of 1999. ... Hydraulic turbine and electrical generator. ... Río Santa is a river in the South American Andes cordillera in the Ancash Region of northwest central Peru. ...

The Peruvian government has forbidden excavation in the area where the town of Yungay is buried, declaring it a national cemetery. The few survivors were resettled. In 2000, the tragedy inspired the government to declare May 31 as Natural Disaster Education and Reflection Day, in memory of the deadliest seismic disaster in the history of Latin America. Yungay is a town in the Ancash Region in north central Peru, South America. ... May 31 is the 151st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (152nd in leap years), with 214 days remaining. ... Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ...

Aerial view of the town of Yungay before the earthquake. Image File history File links Yungay_before_landslide. ...

Aerial view of Yungay after the earthquake and landslide, at almost the same scale as the previous photo. Image File history File links Yungay_after_landslide. ...

External link

• Terremoto y aluvión en Chimbote (in Spanish)