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2005 Zarand earthquake

Coordinates: 30°43′N 56°49′E / 30.72°N 56.81°E / 30.72; 56.81
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2005 Zarand earthquake
2005 Zarand earthquake is located in Iran
Tehran
Tehran
Bam
Bam
2005 Zarand earthquake
UTC time2005-02-22 02:25:22
ISC event8007175
USGS-ANSSComCat
Local dateFebruary 22, 2005 (2005-02-22)
Local time05:55
Magnitude6.4 Mw[1]
Depth15.5 km (10 mi)[1]
Epicenter30°43′N 56°49′E / 30.72°N 56.81°E / 30.72; 56.81[1]
TypeReverse[2]
Areas affectedIran
Total damage$80 million USD[2]
Max. intensityMMI VIII (Severe)[3]
Peak acceleration0.51 g[4]
Casualties612 dead, 1,411 injured[2]

An earthquake affected several villages in the Kerman province of Iran on February 22, 2005, at 05:55:23 local time. The shock measured 6.4 on the moment magnitude scale and had a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe). Zarand is located 740 km southeast of Tehran. The maximum recorded peak ground acceleration was 0.51 g at Shirinrud dam. The United States' National Earthquake Information Center and the Belgian' Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters both show that 612 died and 1,411 were injured in the event.

Damage and casualties

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Four villages, each having around 1,000 inhabitants, were reported completely destroyed, and 30% to 70% of buildings in more than 40 villages were reported damaged. It is estimated that the population of the affected area exceeds 30,000. A great portion of population of several villages are severely affected because of poor condition of buildings. The epicenter of the quake was in a mountainous and sparsely inhabited area. It is believed that the death toll could have been much higher if the quake had stricken a more densely populated area like Bam.

Previous events

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The region of Zarand is close to an active fault, known as the Kuhbanan fault in the north east of the city. Its trend is northwest–southeast and its length is 160 km. Zarand has been hit by several quakes in the last 70 years, with the oldest recorded one going back to 1933. On December 20, 1977, at 04:34 Iran Standard Time (23:34 December 19 UTC), the area was hit by a 6.2-magnitude earthquake leaving 521 dead and 3 villages completely destroyed. On December 26, 2003, another devastating earthquake happened in Bam, 200 km southwest of Zarand, which is in the same province.[5]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c ISC (2015), ISC-GEM Global Instrumental Earthquake Catalogue (1900–2009), Version 2.0, International Seismological Centre
  2. ^ a b c PAGER-CAT Earthquake Catalog, Version 2008_06.1, United States Geological Survey, September 4, 2009
  3. ^ Berberian, M. (2014), Earthquakes and Coseismic Surface Faulting on the Iranian Plateau, Developments in Earth Surface Processes (1st ed.), Elsevier, p. 621, ISBN 978-0444632920
  4. ^ EMSC, Earthquake Mw 6.3 in Iran on February 22nd, 2005 at 02:25 UTC, European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre
  5. ^ Talebian, M.; Biggs, J.; Bolourchi, M.; Copley, A.; Ghassemi, A.; Ghorashi, M.; Hollingsworth, J.; Jackson, J.; Nissen, E.; Oveisi, B.; Parsons, B.; Priestley, K.; Saiidi, A. (2006). "The Dahuiyeh (Zarand) earthquake of 2005 February 22 in central Iran: reactivation of an intramountain reverse fault". Geophysical Journal International. 64 (1): 137–148. Bibcode:2006GeoJI.164..137T. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2005.02839.x.
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