2002 Bou’in-Zahra earthquake

The 2002 Bou’in-Zahra earthquake occurred on 22 June 2002. The shock measured 6. 5 on the Mwc scale, had a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII, and was followed by more than 20 aftershocks. At least 261 people were killed and 1,500 more were injured.

About 2002 Bou’in-Zahra earthquake in brief

Summary 2002 Bou'in-Zahra earthquakeThe 2002 Bou’in-Zahra earthquake occurred on 22 June 2002. The shock measured 6. 5 on the Mwc scale, had a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII, and was followed by more than 20 aftershocks. At least 261 people were killed and 1,500 more were injured. The earthquake was felt as far away as the capital city of Tehran, approximately 290 kilometres east of the epicenter. Most houses in the region were single-story masonry buildings, and virtually all of these collapsed. The public became angry due to the slow official response to victims who needed supplies. Residents of the town of Avaj resorted to throwing stones at the car of a government minister. A previously unmapped thrust with little surface expression, the Abdareh fault, has been identified from the disruption of earlier drainage systems by the growth of the fold in its hanging wall, and is thought to be responsible for the earthquake. Such structures are known as blind thrusts, and have been responsible for many destructive earthquakes in Iran and elsewhere. In 1990 a rupture killed over 40,000 people, injured 60,000, and left more than 500,000 homeless. An estimated 5,000 buildings were damaged beyond repair in the Qazvin province, 120 buildings were demolished and 50 villages suffered massive damage.

In neighboring Hamadan province, 45 villages were destroyed and 45,000 homes were damaged. Damage to the Iranian Newer code of practice for seismic design fared much better due to better seismic-resistant design and structural failure resulting from the resulting collapse of buildings. The greatest damage was across an area best known for its seedless grape harvesting, a getaway for wealthy residents of Tehran. The region was hit by an even greater earthquake in 1962, which killed 12,200, and in 1990 a ruptured earthquake killed more than 40,00 people. The northeastern part of Iran lies across part of the belt of active continental collision between the Arabian Plate and the Eurasian Plate. Iran is crossed by several major faults, with 90% of them being seismically active and subject to many earthquakes each year. The area around the rupture experiences minor quakes almost daily. Qazvin Province, which is located between these two zones, suffers less earthquakes, but these may be more powerful because stresses have longer to build.