Terra Firma is a Little Shaky
In 1755, catastrophe struck. On November 1st, All Saints' Day, an earthquake of around magnitude 9 struck off Cape San Vicente, southwest of the southern tip of Portugal. The quake, which lasted up to six minutes according to some accounts, devastated the city of Lisbon. The quake also created a tidal wave that reached all the way to the Caribbean and even licked at Finland, and help finish destroying Lisbon with five meter waves. Further south along the peninsula, the southern coast of Portugal and western coast of Andalucia received killer waves of up to fifteen meters.
In Spain, towns like Ayamonte and Conil were almost swept away. Over a thousand people died in Ayamonte. Other towns, like Sanlúcar de Barrameda and Puerto de Santa María were gravely affected. Cádiz, right in the line of the monster waves, was lucky. It was surrounded by large walls that also fronted on the sea, and had gates in the harbor that could be closed, as a defensive measure. The governor ordered them closed. The wave, destructive as only a wall of fifteen meters moving at many kilometers per hour can be, knocked down parts of the wall and flooded the lower part of town. But the existence of the wall impeded the total destruction of the city.
In Lisbon, possibly upwards of 90,000 people died, in Morocco and the other Atlantic coasts near the epicenter, tens of thousands. Two meter waves reached Cornwall in England, and some observers mentioned six meter waves in the Antilles. What if, instead of the year 1755, it was changed to 2015, just 260 years later? The walls that then protected Cádiz have disappeared, to be replaced with boating marinas, a working port, and a naval base. Puerto de Santa María is now a large coastal city with a flourishing port. Lisbon is an important European capital with over two million inhabitants in its metropolitan area (twenty percent of the population), and the richest city of the country. Much of the southern Portugal and western Andalucian coasts are magnets for sun-seeking tourists. Northwestern Morocco is also heavily populated now. Casablanca, which was a tiny little town in 1755, is now the commercial capital of the country, and most important port, with over seven million inhabitants. Rabat, just to the north, also on the coast, is the administrative capital with close to two million people. Together, they are the motor of the country.
Yet, there are practically no measures in place to save human lives and avoid massive destruction if another exceptional earthquake and tsunami hits the region. And it is only a matter of time. The area is active, much like the fault that runs through northern Turkey and that has created havoc and loss of life in recent years. Or the fault line the runs along Italy's backbone. The last time there was an earthquake along the same fault to the southwest of Cape San Vicente, was in February, 2007. At magnitude 6.1, it only damaged some buildings. Before that, the greatest earthquake in the same area was in February, 1969. It was magnitude 7.2 and caused, according to some, 19 deaths in Spain. Other sources claimed only 7, and those due to heart attacks, but those sources sound suspiciously like official Francoist voices trying to calm everybody down. Buildings were destroyed in Huelva and Isla Cristina, hundreds were damaged. The earthquake reached Galicia with a magnitude of 5.9 and was widely felt. It was night, people were sleeping, and they were shaken awake. Many people ran out of their houses, my parents included. My mother told me, that as a result, a chasm opened up in a nearby hill. I'm not so sure about that. Most likely, some boulders precariously perched, probably fell.
In these previous earthquakes, there was no tsunami. But the possibility exists with every earthquake. It just has to be at a certain depth, and of a certain strength, to cause widespread death, destruction, and mayhem. Throughout the years, there are written testimonies that tell of great shakings of the earth and enormous waves that swallow entire towns. Some of them might be exaggerated, but they all have the germ of truth. And that germ is that the southwestern area of the Iberian peninsula is from time to time subject to earthquake and tsunami destruction. Popular perception doesn't see Spain as a seismically active country, but in reality, it is one of the most active in Europe, along with Italy, the Balkans, Greece, and Turkey. The reason is that it is just north of the Europe/Northern Africa fault line, and there are even little faults running north into the peninsula. Central Europe isn't completely safe, either, though. The Alps are still moving north, and may cause the earth to shake at some point, such as when the city of Basel was destroyed in 1356. Though, they are not as much at risk as the Mediterranean area.
The Earth is a living being, that moves and shifts beneath our feet much like we do when we're sitting in a chair. Each little change of posture ensures that our world is dramatically changed. Sometimes our neighbors are the ones affected, sometimes we are. But we should never take for granted that we won't be jolted out of our tranqulity.
In Spain, towns like Ayamonte and Conil were almost swept away. Over a thousand people died in Ayamonte. Other towns, like Sanlúcar de Barrameda and Puerto de Santa María were gravely affected. Cádiz, right in the line of the monster waves, was lucky. It was surrounded by large walls that also fronted on the sea, and had gates in the harbor that could be closed, as a defensive measure. The governor ordered them closed. The wave, destructive as only a wall of fifteen meters moving at many kilometers per hour can be, knocked down parts of the wall and flooded the lower part of town. But the existence of the wall impeded the total destruction of the city.
In Lisbon, possibly upwards of 90,000 people died, in Morocco and the other Atlantic coasts near the epicenter, tens of thousands. Two meter waves reached Cornwall in England, and some observers mentioned six meter waves in the Antilles. What if, instead of the year 1755, it was changed to 2015, just 260 years later? The walls that then protected Cádiz have disappeared, to be replaced with boating marinas, a working port, and a naval base. Puerto de Santa María is now a large coastal city with a flourishing port. Lisbon is an important European capital with over two million inhabitants in its metropolitan area (twenty percent of the population), and the richest city of the country. Much of the southern Portugal and western Andalucian coasts are magnets for sun-seeking tourists. Northwestern Morocco is also heavily populated now. Casablanca, which was a tiny little town in 1755, is now the commercial capital of the country, and most important port, with over seven million inhabitants. Rabat, just to the north, also on the coast, is the administrative capital with close to two million people. Together, they are the motor of the country.
Yet, there are practically no measures in place to save human lives and avoid massive destruction if another exceptional earthquake and tsunami hits the region. And it is only a matter of time. The area is active, much like the fault that runs through northern Turkey and that has created havoc and loss of life in recent years. Or the fault line the runs along Italy's backbone. The last time there was an earthquake along the same fault to the southwest of Cape San Vicente, was in February, 2007. At magnitude 6.1, it only damaged some buildings. Before that, the greatest earthquake in the same area was in February, 1969. It was magnitude 7.2 and caused, according to some, 19 deaths in Spain. Other sources claimed only 7, and those due to heart attacks, but those sources sound suspiciously like official Francoist voices trying to calm everybody down. Buildings were destroyed in Huelva and Isla Cristina, hundreds were damaged. The earthquake reached Galicia with a magnitude of 5.9 and was widely felt. It was night, people were sleeping, and they were shaken awake. Many people ran out of their houses, my parents included. My mother told me, that as a result, a chasm opened up in a nearby hill. I'm not so sure about that. Most likely, some boulders precariously perched, probably fell.
In these previous earthquakes, there was no tsunami. But the possibility exists with every earthquake. It just has to be at a certain depth, and of a certain strength, to cause widespread death, destruction, and mayhem. Throughout the years, there are written testimonies that tell of great shakings of the earth and enormous waves that swallow entire towns. Some of them might be exaggerated, but they all have the germ of truth. And that germ is that the southwestern area of the Iberian peninsula is from time to time subject to earthquake and tsunami destruction. Popular perception doesn't see Spain as a seismically active country, but in reality, it is one of the most active in Europe, along with Italy, the Balkans, Greece, and Turkey. The reason is that it is just north of the Europe/Northern Africa fault line, and there are even little faults running north into the peninsula. Central Europe isn't completely safe, either, though. The Alps are still moving north, and may cause the earth to shake at some point, such as when the city of Basel was destroyed in 1356. Though, they are not as much at risk as the Mediterranean area.
The Earth is a living being, that moves and shifts beneath our feet much like we do when we're sitting in a chair. Each little change of posture ensures that our world is dramatically changed. Sometimes our neighbors are the ones affected, sometimes we are. But we should never take for granted that we won't be jolted out of our tranqulity.
Mother nature always wins.
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