|
|
|
| Date | January 8, 2009 |
|---|---|
| Magnitude | 6.2 Mw (6.2 ML) |
| Depth | 4.5 km (2.8 mi)[1] |
| Epicenter | 10°11′49″N 84°09′32″W / 10.197°N 84.159°WCoordinates: 10°11′49″N 84°09′32″W / 10.197°N 84.159°W |
| Countries or regions | |
| Casualties | 34 dead, 91 injured,[2] 56 missing |
The 2009 Costa Rica earthquake (also known as Cinchona Earthquake), occurred at 1:21:34 pm local time (19:21:34 UTC) on January 8, 2009. The epicenter of the 6.1 Mw earthquake was in northern Costa Rica, 30 kilometres (19 mi) north-northwest of San José.[1] The earthquake was felt all over Costa Rica as well as in southern central Nicaragua.[1]
|
Contents
|
The earthquake took at least 34 lives,[3] including at least three children, left about 64 people missing,[3] and injured at least 91.[2] Hundreds of people were trapped and two villages had been cut off.[4] Most of the victims died when a landslide occurred near the La Paz waterfall by the Poás Volcano, and 452 people including 369 tourists were evacuated from the area in helicopters.[5] 1,244 people were displaced in the immediate aftermath.[3][6] In addition, a hotel, houses, roads, and vehicles were damaged, and several bridges were also destroyed.[5] The town of Cinchona was heavily hit, and all of the buildings there were heavily damaged.[7] Power was temporarily disrupted in San José.[1]
The Costa Rican Red Cross sent 400 personnel to assist in the recovery.[6] The agency said, "Some 42 communities were affected and sustained serious impacts on civil and electrical infrastructure... [They] are going to need a lot of help."[6] Four helicopters were also dispatched in order to help aid efforts.[6] The Comisión Nacional de Emergencias (National Emergency Commission) also requested for private helicopters to help with the aid.[8] Additionally, the United States and Colombia dispatched helicopters with aid to assist with the relief and recovery efforts.[9]
About 2,000 aftershocks have been felt throughout Costa Rica.[3]
On January 12, the president Oscar Arias declared National Grieving of 5 days out of respect for the victims, and asked the organizers of the Fiestas de Palmares[disambiguation needed
] to postpone them.
On January 13, the 'Banco de Costa Rica' announced that it would offer home financing credit to homeowners who want to rebuild or fix their home.[10]
| Wikinews has related news: Strongest earthquake in 150 years hits Costa Rica |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)