1976 Zalzab earthquake
| UTC time | 1976-09-16 15:30:14 |
|---|---|
| Local date | September 16, 1976 |
| Local time | 14:30:14 |
| Duration | 29 seconds |
| Magnitude | 6.6 Mw |
| Depth | 10 km (6 mi) |
| Epicenter | Ait Sufyan, Salamat |
| Fault | Zalzab Fault |
| Areas affected | Northwestern Salamat, Far-eastern Yryel |
| Max. intensity | IX |
| Peak acceleration | 0.78 g |
| Peak velocity | 91.7 cm/s |
| Tsunami | No |
| Landslides | Yes |
| Aftershocks | 1976 Abu Zeydan Earthquake |
| Casualties | 6,204 |
The 1976 Zalzab Earthquake was a seismic event which affected the mountainous Zalzab region of Salamat. It occurred on September 16 1976 at 14 h 30 min 14 s local time (15 h 30 min 14 s UTC) and lasted for about 30 seconds. This earthquake also affected the neighbouring country of Yryel and was felt in Dar Al Hamma, 700 kilometers away from the epicenter and also affected the neighbouring country of Yryel, although to a much lesser extent due to the local geology. 6,204 died or disappeared during the earthquake, making it one of the deadliest of the country's history after the 1827 Hamma earthquake and the 1779 Zalzab earthquake. The earthquake occurred on the very active Zalzab fault, a fault which circles partially the city of the same name from the southwest, and which is the origin of at least 5 earthquakes with a magnitude superior to 3.0 Mw every year.
Damage and casualties
6,204 died in the earthquake and the region suffered heavy damages ; 60% of the city of Zalzab, located 27 kilometers northwest of the epicenter, was affected ; an estimated 530 000 lost their home, mostly in the small mountain villages, the most affected being the Ait Sufyan village located just 600 meters west of the earthquake, and of which only the mosque subsisted. A water filtration plant in Zalzab was destroyed ; 448 schools were at least affected by the damage, and 4 hospitals were affected too. Roads crossing the region were mostly damaged, most being victims of landslides and rocks falling. This affected aid and relief transportations, most notably for the surroundings of the city of Zalzab. The airport of Zalzab was completely destroyed and was never rebuilt again due to the lack of money and corruption in the local and regional government. An electric post in western Zalzab was also damaged.
Salamatis living abroad had a very difficult time trying to contact their relatives in the region, due to the destruction of three 20,000 switch offices in Zalzab and a 8,000 switch office was mildly affected. The railtracks of the region were mildly affected by rocks falling on the track, and the roof of the Zalzab train station collapsed at around 6:45 pm the same day. The Imoughrasan train station, only lightly affected and 11 kilometers southeast of Zalzab, was used as a stop to deliver aid.
Aftershocks
The region was affected by more aftershocks after the original earthquake (in bold in the list) :
| Date and time (local) | Magnitude | Epicenter | Casualties |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1976-09-16 14:30:14 | 6.6 | 27 km SW of Zalzab | 6,204 |
| 1976-09-16 14:53:58 | 4.9 | 25 km NW of Zalzab | 1 |
| 1976-09-16 15:51:13 | 5.2 | 20 km NW of Zalzab | 26 |
| 1976-09-16 17:10:27 | 4.1 | 17 km W of Zalzab | 3 |
| 1976-09-16 22:57:49 | 3.9 | 20 km SW of Zalzab | |
| 1976-09-17 00:23:04 | 4.7 | 16 km W of Zalzab | 9 |
| 1976-09-17 06:51:25 | 4.0 | 33 km S of Zalzab | 2 |
| 1976-09-17 12:07:51 | 3.2 | 18 km SW of Zalzab | 1 |
| 1976-09-17 16:49:36 | 3.5 | 24 km SW of Zalzab | |
| 1976-09-18 10:25:19 (1976 Abu Zeydan Earthquake) | 5.7 | 20 km SW of Zalzab | 322 |
| 1976-09-18 10:29:16 | 4.2 | 23 km SW of Zalzab | 17 |
| 1976-09-18 15:59:32 | 3.7 | 38 km SE of Zalzab | 5 |
| 1976-09-19 02:39:00 | 4.0 | 23 km SW of Zalzab | 1 |
| 1976-09-19 19:45:22 | 3.3 | 14 km W of Zalzab | 1 |
| 1976-09-20 03:53:19 | 3.8 | 16 km W of Zalzab | |
| 1976-09-20 07:29:17 | 4.7 | 24 km SW of Zalzab | 4 |
| 1976-09-20 23:56:04 | 4.0 | 19 km SW of Zalzab | 1 |
| 1976-09-21 02:28:40 | 5.6 | 13 km W of Zalzab | 62 |
| 1976-09-22 22:16:49 | 3.1 | 22 km SW of Zalzab | |
| 1976-09-23 10:15:24 | 3.6 | 18 km SW of Zalzab | |
| 1976-09-25 08:18:53 | 4.7 | 23 km SW of Zalzab | 2 |
| 1976-09-25 21:05:50 | 3.3 | 21 km SW of Zalzab | |
| 1976-09-27 13:12:18 | 3.8 | 16 km W of Zalzab | |
| 1976-09-28 04:44:53 | 4.9 | 24 km SW of Zalzab | 5 |
| 1976-09-29 13:47:12 | 5.4 | 19 km SW of Zalzab | 15 |
| 1976-10-01 22:53:13 | 4.4 | 24 km SW of Zalzab | |
| 1976-10-03 04:17:27 | 3.9 | 27 km SW of Zalzab | |
| 1976-10-06 21:20:49 | 5.2 | 20 km SW of Zalzab | 4 |
| 1976-10-15 16:52:56 | 4.4 | 28 km SW of Zalzab | |
| 1976-10-22 01:30:11 | 4.1 | 23 km SW of Zalzab | 1 |
| 1976-10-27 14:28:16 | 3.4 | 19 km SW of Zalzab | |
| 1976-11-08 01:29:06 | 4.2 | 22 km SW of Zalzab | |
| 1976-11-19 09:02:51 | 4.5 | 25 km SW of Zalzab | 1 |
Reactions
National
The lack of reaction by the government fueled a sentiment of anger among Zalzabi Berbers, which would be one of the causes of the Zalzab revolt. Only some soldiers and firefighters participated at the relief efforts, while Islamic charities and international aid was doing most of the work. No government official did express themselves about the earthquake nor visit the affected regions, which were the causes of an attempted arson of the Presidential House in Dar Djamail by Zalzabi Berbers living in Dar Al Hamma on September 22.
International
- Upon receiving the news of the earthquake, President Gilberto Costella expressed his condolences to the people of Salamat through a diplomatic note elaborated jointly with the Assembly of the Union. However, the demeanor changed when the inaction of the Salamati government was reported by Galet news outlets. The Council of Equals released another note, condemning the inaction of the Salamati government, denouncing what was called "gross incompetence in the face of tragedy, either intentionally or by ignorance". Additional notes chastising the Salamati leadership were released through the month by humanitarian organizations. The ambassador of Salamat to Regenza was called for explanations by Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but denied any inaction by the government.
- On September 21, the Council of Representatives debated a proposal of issuing individual sanctions to officials of the Salamati government in the form of asset freezing in Galet banks. Majid Khummam was included as a target of the possible sanctions. The proposal passed the lower house but was eventually rejected in the Transnational Council on September 25.
- On September 19, the Assembly of the Union approved the sending of approximately 528 volunteered rescue workers to the affected regions along with humanitarian aid on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.