The 1844 Salta earthquake took place in the
Province of Salta, in the Republic of
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, on 18 October at 23:00 UTC. It had an estimated magnitude of 6.5 .
The earthquake had an estimated
hypocentral depth of 30 km.
Damage and casualties
The Province of Salta is an area of high seismic activity. The last major earthquake to have affected the area prior to the October 1844 event was in 1692.
The destructive force of the 1844 Salta earthquake was measured at VII on the
Mercalli intensity scale. It impacted several villages in the
Province of Salta as well as the capital city. It caused damage and several families were affected but there was no reported loss of life.
The earthquake caused damage not only in Salta, but also in
Jujuy
San Salvador de Jujuy (), commonly known as Jujuy and locally often referred to as San Salvador, is the capital and largest city of Jujuy Province in northwest Argentina. Also, it is the seat of the Doctor Manuel Belgrano Department. It lies near ...
,
Tucumán and
Santiago del Estero.
Several aftershocks were felt after the initial tremor. Cracks opened in the ground creating new channels through which water flowed even up to 26 October. The final aftershock was felt on the 27th.
Aftermath
On feeling the tremors the villagers rushed to the main square and then towards the
Cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...
where they removed the statues of Christ and the Virgen del Milagro to the plaza. There they prostrated before the images and prayed.
Although the Fiesta del Milagro has its origins in the
1692 Salta earthquake, in which the images of Christ and the Virgen del Milagro were said to have saved the city from the earthquakes, it was not until 1845, a year the following the 1844 earthquake, that ecclesiastical authorities along with the Government of the Province, signed the so-called Pact of Allegiance (Pacta de Fidelidad). In this pact the village agreed to officiate the acts of the
Fiesta de Milagro (Feast of the Miracle), with novena and processions every September 15. The primitive "Fiestas del Milagro" in Salta were filled with celebration and excess. But it is from 1935, after the severe restrictions imposed by the Archbishop Tavella, that these "excesses" were banned and the feast took on the character of penance and atonement.
See also
*
List of earthquakes in Argentina
This is a list of earthquakes in Argentina.
* Details are approximate for old events.
* Magnitude is measured in the Richter magnitude scale.
* Intensity is measured in the Mercalli intensity scale.
* Depth is given in miles.
1600-1899
20th c ...
*
List of historical earthquakes
Historical earthquakes is a list of significant earthquakes known to have occurred prior to the beginning of the 20th century. As the events listed here occurred before routine instrumental recordings, they rely mainly on the analysis of written ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Salta earthquake, 1844
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1844 disasters in Argentina