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 The 1976 Guatemala earthquake''' struck on February 4, 1976 at 03:01:43 local time (09:01:43 UTC-6). It was a 7.5 Mw earthquake, centered in the Motagua Fault, about 160 km northeast of Guatemala City, Guatemala. The quake's hypocenter was located at a depth of 5 km near the town of Los Amates in the department of Izabal.

Cities throughout the country suffered damage, and most adobe type houses in the outlying areas of Guatemala City were completely destroyed. The earthquake struck during the early morning (at 3.01 am, local time) when most people were asleep. This has contributed to the high death toll of 23,000. Approximately 76,000 were injured, and many thousands left homeless. Some of areas went without electricity and communication for days.

The main shock was followed by thousands of aftershocks, some of the larger ones causing additional loss of life and damage.

Seismic data
The quake's epicentre was located near the town of Los Amates, in the eastern part of the Motagua Fault, a left-lateral strike-slip fault that forms the tectonic boundary between the North American plate and the Caribbean plate. Ground shaking was felt during approximately 39 seconds, and caused visible rupturing over 230 km along the Motagua fault, while the inferred length of faulting -based on aftershock registration- was estimated at 300 km. Average horizontal displacement along the Motagua fault was 100 cm, with a maximum displacement of 326 cm.

Maximum seismic intensity (MM IX) was located in the Mixco area, some sections of Guatemala City and in Gualán. A seismic intensity of MM VI covered an area of 33,000 km2. Liquefaction and sand boils were observed in several locations with high seismic intensity.

The main quake activated secondary fault zones, including the Mixco fault, located in a densely populated area just north-west of Guatemala City.

Aftershocks
Several heavy aftershocks, ranging from 5.2 to 5.8 Mw caused additional casualties and hampered relief efforts.

Source: Wayerly Person, William Spence, and James W. Dewey. Main event and principal aftershocks from teleseismic data. In: Guatemalan Earthquake of February 4, 1976, A Preliminary Report.

Victims and damage
The most heavily affected area covered some 30,000 km2, with a population of 2.5 million. Some 23,000 people were reported dead and 77,000 wounded. Approximately 258,000 houses were destroyed, leaving about 1.2 million people homeless. 40% of the national hospital infrastructure was destroyed, while other health facilities also suffered substantial damage.

Landslides
The main shock and the larger aftershocks triggered thousands of landslides throughout a broad region in central Guatemala that parallels the main fault and extends as far westward as 91°30'W. longitude. The landslides blocked or destroyed many communication routes. Landslide debris deposited in stream valleys constitutes an immediate serious hazard in many localities. landslides had blocked vital access roads both to the severely affected highlands as well as to the Caribbean coast. On the so-called Atlantic highway (which connects the capital to the main ports in the Caribbean), the major bridge at Agua Caliente collapsed, while the bridge of Benque Viejo was on the point of collapse, forcing traffic to be re-routed through El Salvador and complicating relief efforts to affected areas in the East. interrupting railroad and road traffic The total amount of soil cleared from the roads as a result of landslides was about two million cubic metres.