  | |
| Local date | 7 June 1692 |
|---|---|
| Local time | 11:43 |
| Magnitude | 7.5 Mw[1] |
| Depth | 10 km |
| Epicenter | 18°00′N 76°30′W / 18.00°N 76.5°W |
| Areas affected | Jamaica |
| Tsunami | Yes |
| Casualties | Around 5,000 |
The 1692 Jamaica earthquake struck Port Royal, Jamaica, on 7 June. A stopped pocket watch found in the harbor during a 1959 excavation[2][3][4] indicated that it occurred around 11:43 AM local time.[5]
Known as the "storehouse and treasury of the West Indies" and as the "wickedest city in the world",[2] Port Royal was, at the time, a key city in colonial Jamaica and one of the busiest and wealthiest ports in the Americas, as well as a common home port for many of the privateers and pirates operating on the Caribbean Sea.
The 1692 earthquake caused most of the city to sink below sea level. About 2,000 people died as a result of the earthquake and the following tsunami, and another 3,000 people died in the following days due to injuries and disease.[5]
- ^ McCann, W.R. (2004). "Estimating the threat of tsunamigenic earthquakes and earthquake induced-landslide tsunami in the Caribbean" (PDF). In Mercado-Irizarry A, & Liu P. (ed.). Caribbean tsunami hazard: Proceedings of the NSF Caribbean Tsunami Workshop. World Scientific Publishing Co. pp. 43–65.
- ^ a b Hamilton, D.L. (1991). "4: Simon Benning, Pewterer of Port Royal". In Little, B.J. (ed.). Text-Aided Archaeology. CRC Press. p. 40. ISBN 978-0-8493-8853-8.
- ^ "The Link Collections" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 April 2016. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
- ^ Sunken Pirate City at Port Royal
- ^ a b "Historic Earthquakes: Jamaica 1692 June 07 UTC". United States Geological Survey. 21 October 2009. Archived from the original on 17 December 2009. Retrieved 6 December 2009.