  | |
| Local date | 11 January 1838[1] |
|---|---|
| Local time | 20:45 (EET) |
| Duration | 3–5 minutes |
| Magnitude | 7.3 Ms 7.5 Mw |
| Epicenter | 45°43′N 26°43′E / 45.717°N 26.717°E |
| Areas affected | Romania |
| Max. intensity | MSK-64 IX (Destructive) |
| Landslides | Yes |
| Casualties | 73 dead, 14 injured |
The 1838 Vrancea earthquake struck the western part of Vrancea County on 23 January (O.S. 11 January)[2] with a magnitude of 7.5. The seism caused extensive damage in Moldavia and Wallachia, and killed dozens of people.[3] The earthquake occurred just 36 years after another earthquake of magnitude over 7 on Richter scale devastated the southern part of Wallachia.
The earthquake occurred at 20:45, being felt strongly in Bucharest and also all over the country up to Lviv, Sevastopol, Constantinople (Istanbul), Odessa, etc.[4] A detailed report on the phenomenon was promptly done by Güstav Schuller, mining geologist in the service of the Duke of Saxony. He said the quake had a foreshock followed by three strong shocks.[5]
During this earthquake, in some areas, especially the epicentral zone, mainly in Vrancea, Buzău, Brăila and Dâmbovița counties appeared large ground cracks and liquefaction phenomena.
- ^ Borcea Ștefan (18 March 2014). "Cutremurele de acum 200 de ani, pe limba martorilor evenimentelor. "Pământul pe alocurea s-au despicat și au eșit apă cu miros de iarbă de pușcă și de pucioasă"". Adevărul (in Romanian).
- ^ "Dosare istorice: Cutremurul din 1838"[permanent dead link], Optimal Media, March 3, 2012
- ^ Corbu, Adrien C. (1936). Bucureștii vechi, documente iconografice. Bucharest: Cartea românească. p. 18.
- ^ Constantin, A. P.; Pantea, A.; Stoica, R. (25 May 2010). "Vrancea (Romania) subcrustal earthquakes: historical sources and macroseismic intensity assessment" (PDF). Horia Hulubei National Institute of Physics and Nuclear Engineering.
- ^ "ISTORIE. Care au fost cele mai mari cutremure în România", EVZ.ro, April 18, 2013