The 1974 Pattan earthquake occurred in the rugged and isolated
Hunza Hunza may refer to:
* Hunza, Iran
* Hunza Valley, an area in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan
** Hunza (princely state), a former principality
** Hunza District, a recently established district
** Hunza River, a waterway
** Hunza Peak, a mou ...
,
Hazara and
Swat districts of northern
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
at 12:11 UTC on 28 December. The 6.2
surface wave magnitude quake had a shallow focal depth of 22 km and was followed by numerous aftershocks.
An official estimate of the number killed was 5,300 with approximately 17,000 injured, and around 4,400 homes were destroyed.
A total of 97,000 were reported affected by the tremor. Most of the destruction was centered on the village of
Pattan
Pattan is a sub-district, town and a municipal committee in Baramulla district in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Location
Pattan is surrounded by Breng Block towards North, Kunzer block towards the south, Narbal block towa ...
. The village was almost completely destroyed.
The epicentral region is characterized by steep-walled narrow
canyons and
valley
A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams ove ...
s. Most of the population was concentrated along the rivers. Much of the destruction was caused by the numerous
landslides and
rockfall
A rockfall or rock-fallWhittow, John (1984). ''Dictionary of Physical Geography''. London: Penguin, 1984. . is a quantity/sheets of rock that has fallen freely from a cliff face. The term is also used for collapse of rock from roof or walls of mi ...
s which came tumbling down from high above. The main road leading into the area was blocked for about by landslides and rockfalls, hampering relief efforts. The government flew in emergency supplies by
helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...
until the roads were reopened on 13 January.
The earthquake, which reached
MMI V in
Kabul
Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...
,
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
, affected some of the
Indus Valley region. Several nations contributed money and supplies to aid the inhabitants of the stricken area.
See also
*
List of earthquakes in 1974
This is a list of earthquakes in 1974. Only magnitude 6.0 or greater earthquakes appear on the list. Lower magnitude events are included if they have caused death, injury or damage. Events which occurred in remote areas will be excluded from the ...
*
List of earthquakes in Pakistan
Pakistan is one of the most seismically active countries in the world, being crossed by several major faults. As a result, earthquakes in Pakistan occur often and are destructive.
Geology
Pakistan geologically overlaps both the Eurasian and I ...
Sources
* ''Earthquake information Bulletin'', March–April 1975, Volume 7, Number 2
Further reading
*
*
*
External links
*
Earthquakes in Pakistan
Pattan earthquake
Pattan earthquake
Pattan earthquake
Pattan earthquake
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