ARTICLES FOR GUIDED GENERALIZATION: SITUATION ANALYSIS

The 1868 Arica Tsunami

ARICA

Presently located within Chile, the city of Arica has the sort of multi- national past common to many
cities located near the border between two nations with a less than friendly relationship, historically.
The land along the extreme northern coast of Chile, including Arica, was a part of Peru from the
country’s inception until the later part of the nineteenth century, when the War of the Pacific broke out.
During the war, Peru and Chile fought an off and on series of battels from 1879 to 1929. When the war
finally ended in defeat for Peru, the country was forced by treaty to ceed Arica, and the surrounding
lands to Chile. For our purposes however, at the time of the 1868 tsunami Arica still belonged to Peru.

THE TSUNAMI

On August 16, 1868, a magnitude 8.5 earthquake struck the area of the Peru-Chile Trench located just
off of Peru’s extreme southern coast. The large earthquake that reduced the port of Arica to rubble, also
generated a huge trans-pacific tsunami that struck Arica shortly after the earthquake ended. Three navy
ships were anchored in the port at the time of the earthquake; two American, the warship US Watree
and storeship Fredonia; and one Peruvian, the warship Americana. Accounts from crew members of the
two American ships who survived the tsunami give the following details. Several minutes after the quake
the first tsunami wave arrived at Arica as a rapid rise of water, followed by a fierce withdrawal. The
second wave estimated at 90 feet, was the largest. Its advance dashed the hapless Fredonia to pieces on
the rocks of a harbor island, killing all but two crew members. The second wave snapped the moorings
of both the Americana and the Watree, and carried the two ships far inland, where they eventually ran
around. When the ocean finally returned to normal the Watree was, amazingly, still in near-perfect
condition…sitting on the beach 430 yards from the water!

Despite the height and ferocity of the tsunami, the Watree reported only one casualty. The Americana
however, was not as lucky, losing 83 men including the captain. The tsunami was disastrous for the port
of Arica as well, where an estimated 25, 000 people died as a result of the earthquake and tsunami. The
waves literally swept the low-lying parts of the town clean, removing all traces, including the
foundations, of the structures that once existed there.

In total, the 1868 tsunami caused an estimated 300 million dollars in damage, and killed as many as 70,
000 people along the South American coast. Other Peruvian cities damaged by the tsunami include
Ilo/Pisco, where the tsunami killed 20 people and washed away both towns; and Tambo, where the
waves destroyed the town killing an estimated 500 people. The cities of Callao, Mollenido and Trujillo
were also damaged by the tsunami. The tsunami caused considerable damage along the Chilean
coastline as well, damaging ships in Caldera, and completely submerging the city of Iquique, killing 150
people.

Other locations across the Pacific also suffered damage from this tsunami. Hawaii was hit particularly
hard, were runup reached 4.5 meters at Hilo, causing severe damage to the waterfront. Further west,
the tsunami generated 1.5 meters of runup in Japan, and flooded the harbor of Yokohama. The tsunami
also generated sizeable runup and some damage in New Zealand, where heights reached 5.4 and 4.5
meters in the towns of Lyttleton and Oamaru, respectively. Other location reporting the tsunami include
California, Oregon, Australia, Western Somoa, the Austral Islands, Chatham Islands, and the always
tsunami prone Marquesas Island.

MOUNT ETNA ERUPTS

On this day in 1669, Mount Etna, on the island of Sicily in modern-day Italy, begins rumbling. Multiple
eruptions over the next few weeks killed more than 20, 000 people and left thousands more homeless.
Most of the victims could have saved themselves by fleeing, but stayed, in a vain attempt to save their
city.

Mount Etna dominates the island of Sicily. Rising 11, 000 feet above sea level in the northeast section of
Sicily, it can be seen from just about every part of the 460-square-mile island. The geologic history of
Mount Etna demonstrates that it has been periodically spewing ash and lava for thousands of years; the
first recorded eruption of the volcano was in 475 BCE. It is the most active volcano in Europe. In 1169, an
earthquake just prior to an eruption killed 15, 000 people on Sicily. Despite the dangers of living near an
active volcano, the eruptions made the surrounding soil very fertile, so many small villages developed
slopes on the slopes of the mountain.

When Etna began to rumble and belch gas on March 8, the residents nearby ignored the warning signs
of a larger eruption. Three days later, the volcano began spewing out noxious fumes in large quantities.
Approximately 3,000 people living on the slopes of the mountain died from asphyxiation. Even worse,
Etna was soon emitting tremendous amounts of ash and molten lava. The ash was sent out with such
force that significant amounts came down in the southern part of mainland Italy, in some cases nearly
100 miles away. Lava also began pouring down the south side of the mountain heading toward the city
of Catania, 18 miles to the south along the sea.

At the time, the city of Catania had about 20, 000 residents; most failed to flee the city immediately.
Instead, Diego de Pappalardo, a resident of the city, led a team of 50 men to Mount Etna, where they
attempted to divert the lava flow. Wearing cowhides soaked in water, the men bravely approached the
lava with long iron rods, picks and shovels. They were able to hack open a hole in the hardened lava wall
that had developed on the outside of the lava flow and much of the flow began to flow west out of the
new hole. However, the residents of Paterno, a city lying southwest of Etna were monitoring these
developments and quickly realized that this new flow direction could imperil their own city. They
literally fought back the Catanians, while the lava breach hardened and filled again.

For several weeks, the lava pushed toward Catania and the sea. Still, the residents failed to evacuate the
city. Apparently, they remained hopeful that the lava would stop or the city’s ancient defensive walls
would protect them. Neither was the case-the walls were quickly swallowed by the extremely hot lava
and nearly 17, 000 people in Catania died. Most of the city was destroyed. Catania was not the only city
affected – the eruption wiped out 14 towns and villages and left about 27, 000 people homeless.

Following this disaster, it was decreed that interference with the natural flow of lava was prohibited in
Italy, a regulation that remained in effect hundreds of years later.
REMEMBERING THE 1990 LUZON EARTHQUAKE

“WAR Zone”. The aftermath of the 1990 Luzon earthquake. Photo from PHIVOLCS

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines is the third most disaster-prone country in the world. Located
along the Pacific Ocean’s “Ring of Fire” and having 5 major fault lines, it is vulnerable to disasters such as
earthquakes.

The country is no stranger to earthquakes, but one of the most memorable to hit it is the quake that his
the island of Luzon 24 years ago. That powerful quake resulted in a number of collapsed buildings and
thousands of lives lost.

At around 4 pm on July 16, 1990, a magnitude-7.8 earthquake hit Northern and Central Luzon. Its
epicenter was recorded in Nueva Ecija, and the shaking lasted for about a minute.

Among the hardest hit areas were the cities of Baguio, Cabanatuan in Nueva Ecija, and Dagupan in
Pangasinan.

In Baguio City, several structures collapsed, burying people alive. Some establishments destroyed
included hotels like the Hyatt Terraces Plaza, Nevada Hotel, Baguio Hilltop Hotel, Baguio Park Hotel, and
FRB Hotel.

Because of shocks and fear of possible aftershocks, thousands of residents slept on the streets. The
quake left an estimated US $369-million worth of damages, and a total of 2, 412 people dead.

Lessons

The 1990 earthquake left not just massive damage and casualties, but also lessons about disaster
readiness.

Philippine Institute for Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) Director Reanto Solidum said the great
earthquake left us with 4 valuable lessons.

1. Public needs to respond properly during earthquakes

According to Solidum, not much attention was given to disasters, especially earthquakes, at the time. In
fact, earthquake drills were unheard of then.

Fortunately, earthquake drills are often conducted lately. The latest of which is the city-wide drill
conducted on July 2 in Manila as part of the Office of Civil Defense’s (OCD) nationwide simultaneous
earthquake drill.

This is an anticipation of a 7.2-magnitude earthquake that could be produced by the movement of the
West Valley Fault, and a tsunami that could result from the movement of the Manila Trench.

2. Hazards and their effects should be simulated.

After the earthquake, transportation and communication lines were all affected, leaving Baguio isolated
from the outside. The government did not have any idea about what the situation in Baguio was like
then.
Taking off from that, Solidum said it is important for people to be aware of the hazards in their areas so
that if a disaster happens, they are not left clueless about developments – should communication lines
be cut or roads blocked.

3. Building codes should be implemented properly, and land use should be carefully planned.

Despite having several collapsed and destroyed buildings, a good number of them were left standing
then. Solidum said the country’s building code is actually good, but the problem lies in implementation.
Good design, quality materials, and good workmanship are needed for a disaster-resilient building.

When it comes to land use planning, he said that buildings should not be constructed in areas prone to
landslides. “Shaking does not kill people. Collapsing buildings will,” Solidum said.

4. Trained search and rescue groups and medical responders are needed.

Immediate response after an earthquake could be a problem, especially if there is a lack of rescue
groups and responders.

According to Solidum, the golden rule is: “People must be rescued within the first 3 days.” But are we
ready?

In 2004, a study funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the Metro Manila Earthquake
Impact Reduction Study (MMEIRS) found that a 7.2 magnitude earthquake could hit Metro Manila and
could destroy 40% of the establishments in the metropolis and kill around 34, 000.

Have we learned from the lessons left by the 1990 earthquake? Are we ready for the next “big one”? –
Rappler.com

GUIDED GENERALIZATION FOR ENDURING UNDERSTANDING

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