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1977 Vrancea Earthquake

Date	4 March 1977 (1977-03-04)
Magnitude	7.2
Epicenter location	Vrancea County, Romania[1]
Countries or regions affected	Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova
Casualties	1570+ dead 11,000+ injured

Bucharest - Enei Church - 1977

The 1977 Vrancea Earthquake occurred on Friday, 4 March 1977, 21:20 local time and was felt throughout the Balkans. It had a magnitude of 7.2 and its epicenter in Vrancea (in the Eastern Carpathians) at a depth of 94 kilometers.

The earthquake killed about 1,570 people and wounded more than 11,000. Among the victims was the Romanian actor Toma Caragiu. Nicolae Ceauşescu had to suspend his official trip to Nigeria.

About 35,000 buildings were damaged, and the total damage was estimated at more than two billion dollars. Most of the damage was concentrated in Romania's capital, Bucharest, where about 33 large buildings collapsed. Most of those buildings were built before World War II, and were not reinforced. Many of the historic buildings that collapsed were not rebuilt; instead, the land was cleared for the building of the Palace of the Parliament. After the earthquake, the Romanian government imposed tougher construction standards.

In Bulgaria, the earthquake is known as the Vrancea Earthquake or Svishtov Earthquake. Three blocks of flats in the Bulgarian town of Svishtov (near Zimnicea) collapsed, killing more than 100 people. Many other buildings were damaged, including the Church of the Holy Trinity.

Notable Romanians, victims of the earthquake

• Toma Caragiu, actor
• Anatol Baconski, poet
• Alexandru Ivasiuc, writer
• Mihai Gafiţa, writer
• Corneliu M. Popescu, poem translator
• Alexandru Bocăneţ, film producer
• Doina Badea, musician
• Savin Bratu, literary critic
• Daniela Caurea, poet
• Mihail Petroveanu, literary critic
• Veronica Porumbacu, poet
• Eliza Petrăchescu, actress
• Tudor Dumitrescu, pianist
• Ioan Siadbei, literary critic
• Mihaela Mărăcineanu, mezzo-soprano
• Liviu Popa, film director
• Florin Ciorăscu, physicist
• Tudor Stavru, stunt man
• Dr. Ana Conea, geoscientist
• Nicolae Vatamanu
• Viorica Vizante

See also

• The Bulgarian film Sweet and Sour was being aired by TVR and has remained linked to the earthquake in the mind of Romanians^[2].
• On 10 November 1940, another earthquake had struck Bucharest with a Richter magnitude of 7.7.

References

1. ^ USGS - Significant earthquakes of the world, 1977
2. ^ 30 de ani de la marea zguduială, Florentina Stoian, Adevarul, 3 March 2007

External links

• Roxana Roseti, "7,2 grade Richter", Jurnalul Naţional, March 4, 2007

Coordinates: 45°46′N 26°46′E / 45.77°N 26.76°E / 45.77; 26.76