The 2021 Hormozgan earthquakes was a

doublet earthquake __NOTOC__ In seismology, doublet earthquakes – and more generally, multiplet earthquakes – were originally identified as multiple earthquakes with nearly identical waveforms originating from the same location. They are now characterized as sing ...

event in Iran that occurred on November 14, 2021 with magnitudes of 6.0 and 6.4 on the

moment magnitude scale The moment magnitude scale (MMS; denoted explicitly with or Mw, and generally implied with use of a single M for magnitude) is a measure of an earthquake's magnitude ("size" or strength) based on its seismic moment. It was defined in a 1979 pape ...

. The two quakes occurred just a minute and a half apart, killing 2 people and injuring a further 100.

Tectonic setting

Bandar Abbas Bandar Abbas or Bandar-e ‘Abbās ( fa, , , ), is a port city and capital of Hormozgān Province on the southern coast of Iran, on the Persian Gulf. The city occupies a strategic position on the narrow Strait of Hormuz (just across from Musan ...

lies at the southern margin of the

collision zone A collision zone occurs when tectonic plates meet at a convergent boundary both bearing continental lithosphere. As continental lithosphere is usually not subducted due to its relative low density, the result is a complex area of orogeny involving ...

between the

Eurasian Plate The Eurasian Plate is a tectonic plate that includes most of the continent of Eurasia (a landmass consisting of the traditional continents of Europe and Asia), with the notable exceptions of the Indian subcontinent, the Arabian subcontinent and ...

and the

Arabian Plate The Arabian Plate is a minor tectonic plate in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres. It is one of the three continental plates (along with the African and the Indian Plates) that have been moving northward in geological history and collidin ...

. This collision has created the well known

Zagros Mountains The Zagros Mountains ( ar, جبال زاغروس, translit=Jibal Zaghrus; fa, کوه‌های زاگرس, Kuh hā-ye Zāgros; ku, چیاکانی زاگرۆس, translit=Çiyakani Zagros; Turkish: ''Zagros Dağları''; Luri: ''Kuh hā-ye Zāgro ...

and the Iranian Plateau. The main fault system that runs through the Zagros Range is the

Zagros fold and thrust belt The Zagros fold and thrust belt (Zagros FTB) is an approximately long zone of deformed crustal rocks, formed in the foreland of the collision between the Arabian Plate and the Eurasian Plate. It is host to one of the world's largest petroleum pr ...

, which has caused many destructive earthquakes in Iran over the years.

Earthquakes

The first quake was initially measured at magnitude 6.1, but was later revised to 6.0 by the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

. A minute and a half later, the second quake happened. It was initially measured at magnitude 6.4 by the Iranian Seismological Center but was revised to 6.3 later. This event is considered a doublet earthquake because there were two earthquakes of similar size occurring in the same area a short time apart. The second earthquake had an intensity of IX (''Violent'') on the

Modified Mercalli intensity scale The Modified Mercalli intensity scale (MM, MMI, or MCS), developed from Giuseppe Mercalli's Mercalli intensity scale of 1902, is a seismic intensity scale used for measuring the intensity of shaking produced by an earthquake. It measures the eff ...

. The quakes were felt as far away as

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

as well, however not much damage was caused there due to the low intensity of shaking in the area.

Impact

The earthquake triggered a landslide in the mountains of the

Geno Biosphere Reserve The Geno Biosphere Reserve, with a total area of 27,500 hectares, situated in the Hormozgan province of Iran. It has been designated as a protected area by the Iranian Department of Environment in 1976. Geno has mountains as high as 3,000 meters ...

in the Hormozgan Province. Two people were killed; one by a falling utility pole, and the other died while running from his home. A total of 98 people were injured mostly due to widespread panic and some were injured from falling debris. The total cost of damage is estimated at 700 trillion

Iranian toman The Iranian toman ( fa, تومان, tūmân, pronounced ; from Mongolian ''tümen'' "unit of ten thousand", see the unit called tumen) is a superunit of the official currency of Iran, the rial. One toman is equivalent to 10,000 rials. Although t ...

s ($US 165 million). In the city of

Fin A fin is a thin component or appendage attached to a larger body or structure. Fins typically function as foils that produce lift or thrust, or provide the ability to steer or stabilize motion while traveling in water, air, or other fluids. Fin ...

Bandar Abbas County Bandar Abbas County ( fa, شهرستان بندرعباس) is located in Hormozgan province, Iran. The capital of the county is Bandar Abbas Bandar Abbas or Bandar-e ‘Abbās ( fa, , , ), is a port city and capital of Hormozgān Province ...

, roughly 2,125 structures were destroyed and 1,025 damaged. An official said that the worst damages were in the villages Gishan Gharbi, Ab Shirin and Rudshour.

References

{{Earthquakes in Iran 2021 earthquakes Earthquakes in Iran 2021 in Iran November 2021 events in Iran History of Hormozgan Province Doublet earthquakes

Tectonic setting

Earthquakes

Impact

See also

References