2011 Lorca earthquake
The damaged Lorca-Sutullena railway station in Lorca
|
|
  Madrid
 Lorca
|
|
| Date | 11 May 2011 |
|---|---|
| Origin time | 18:47:26 CEST (UTC+02:00) |
| Magnitude | 5.1 Mw |
| Depth | 1 km (0.62 mi) |
| Epicenter | 37°41′56″N 1°40′23″W / 37.699°N 1.673°WCoordinates: 37°41′56″N 1°40′23″W / 37.699°N 1.673°W |
| Areas affected | Spain |
| Max. intensity | MM VII |
| Foreshocks | 1 (4.5 ML) |
| Casualties | 9 dead 403 injured |
The 2011 Lorca earthquake (Spanish: Terremoto de Lorca de 2011) was a moderate magnitude 5.1 Mw earthquake that caused significant localized damage in the Region of Murcia, Spain. Centred at a very shallow depth of 1 km (0.6 mi) near the town of Lorca, it occurred at 18:47 CEST (16:47 UTC) on 11 May 2011, causing panic among locals and displacing many from their homes. The quake was preceded by a magnitude 4.4 (Mw) foreshock at 17:05 (15:05 UTC), that inflicted substantial damage to many older structures in the area, including the historical Espolón Tower of Lorca Castle, the Hermitage of San Clemente and the Convent of Virgen de Las Huertas. Three people were killed by a falling cornice. A total of nine deaths have been confirmed, while dozens are reported injured. The earthquake was the worst to hit the region since a 5.0 Mw tremor struck west of Albolote, Granada in 1956.
The magnitude 5.1 (Mw) main shock occurred inland on 11 May 2011 at 18:47 local time (16:47 UTC) about 2.5 km northeast of Lorca, Spain, at an extremely shallow focal depth of 1 km (0.6 mi). Much of the southern Iberian Peninsula – in particular the Murcia Region – is located on a tectonic zone of common seismic activity, where a plate boundary separating the Eurasia and African Plates is formed. However, most tremors in the region do not exceed perceptible magnitudes. The earthquake was estimated to be a direct result of strike-slip faulting near the major Alhama de Murcia fault, along an unusually shallow fault of between 40 and 50 km (25 to 31 mi) long. Local specialists also reported the presence of surface rupturing in the vicinity of the fault. Initial estimates from the United States Geological Survey placed the magnitude of the quake at 5.3 (Mw); the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre reported an intensity of magnitude 5.2 (ML).
...
Wikipedia