2005 Zarand earthquake
 Tehran
Bam
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| Date | February 22, 2005 |
|---|---|
| Origin time | 02:25:23 UTC [1] |
| Magnitude | 6.4 Mw [1] |
| Depth | 15.5 km (10 mi) [1] |
| Epicenter | Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. [1] |
| Type | Reverse [2] |
| Areas affected | Iran |
| Total damage | $80 million USD [2] |
| Max. intensity | VIII (Severe) [3] |
| Peak acceleration | 0.51 g [4] |
| Casualties | 612 dead, 1,411 injured [2] |
The 2005 Zarand earthquake affected several villages in the Kerman province of Iran on February 22 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). The quake lasted for 11 seconds and at least 61 aftershocks were reported ranging in magnitude between 3.3 and 4.8. Zarand is located 740 km southeast of Tehran. The maximum recorded peak ground acceleration was 0.51 g at Shirinrud dam.
Contents
Damage and casualties
Official reports by Iranian authorities indicate 612 dead and 990 injured. 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.
Affected area
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
The region of Zarand is close to an active fault, known as the Kuhbanan fault [1] 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 21, 1977, 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.
See also
References
External links
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Wikinews has related news: 6.4 magnitude earthquake hits Iran |
- International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent bulletins on Zarand earthquake (PDF files): No.1, No.2, No.3, and No.4.
- M6.4 - central Iran – United States Geological Survey
- Earthquake Near Zarand, Iran – NASA Earth Observatory
- Hundreds killed in Iranian quake
- Race to reach Iran quake victims
- Rain slows Iran quake aid effort
- 'No-one knew what to do'
