December 1911 Guerrero earthquake
Encyclopedia
The December 1911 Guerrero earthquake occurred on December 16, 1911 at 12:14 local time (19:14 UTC) near the coast of Guerrero
, Mexico
. It was an earthquake with magnitude Mw 7.6, or Ms 7.8. There was damage reported on walls and roofs. The electricity had been cut for a time in Mexico City
. The number of casulaties was unclear, as it could be found in some sources but not mentioned in others.
According to the El Paso Herald issued on December 18, 1911, in Mexico City, people rushed to the Zócalo
running aimlessly or praying during the earthquake. The then Mexican president Francisco I. Madero
, conferring with some of his cabinet members at the moment, was standing in front of a window in the National Palace, watching the scene, laughing without fear, and remained there until the earthquake stopped.
The rupture area of this earthquake could have been in the Guerrero seismic gap, which is a seismic gap about 200 km long along the Middle America Trench
.
Guerrero
Guerrero officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Guerrero is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo....
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. It was an earthquake with magnitude Mw 7.6, or Ms 7.8. There was damage reported on walls and roofs. The electricity had been cut for a time in Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
. The number of casulaties was unclear, as it could be found in some sources but not mentioned in others.
According to the El Paso Herald issued on December 18, 1911, in Mexico City, people rushed to the Zócalo
Zócalo
The Zócalo is the main plaza or square in the heart of the historic center of Mexico City. The plaza used to be known simply as the "Main Square" or "Arms Square," and today its formal name is Plaza de la Constitución...
running aimlessly or praying during the earthquake. The then Mexican president Francisco I. Madero
Francisco I. Madero
Francisco Ignacio Madero González was a politician, writer and revolutionary who served as President of Mexico from 1911 to 1913. As a respectable upper-class politician, he supplied a center around which opposition to the dictatorship of Porfirio Díaz could coalesce...
, conferring with some of his cabinet members at the moment, was standing in front of a window in the National Palace, watching the scene, laughing without fear, and remained there until the earthquake stopped.
The rupture area of this earthquake could have been in the Guerrero seismic gap, which is a seismic gap about 200 km long along the Middle America Trench
Middle America Trench
The Middle America Trench is a major subduction zone, an oceanic trench in the eastern Pacific Ocean off the southwestern coast of Middle America, stretching from central Mexico to Costa Rica...
.