The May 31, 1970, Peru earthquake; the disastrous consequences and mitigation of inevitable future events

-John Prince

1 Abstract: On May 31st 1970 an earthquake occurred off the western coast of Peru. The magnitude 7.7 event was responsible for the deaths of 70000 people including some 18000 that were buried after catastrophic debris flow was triggered high atop Mount Huascaran. The avalanche of rock, dirt, snow, ice and water reached speeds greater than 300km/hr as it descended the slopes of the enormous mountain to wreak havoc on the towns and people at the base of the slopes. The death toll was greatly increased by construction techniques which are prone to failure during seismic events. Large magnitude earthquakes are inevitable in the tectonically active western coast of South America. In order to minimize both human casualties and economic losses actions need to be taken to raise awareness and to find an alternative to adobe brick constructions.

Introduction: On the last day of May 1970 an earthquake occurred off the coast of Peru, which resulted in the deaths of over 70,000 people in the surrounding area. About 18000 of the deaths were associated with a catastrophic failure of an over-steepened precipice high on the slopes of Mount Huascaran and the subsequent debris flow which completely buried the town of Yungay and parts of Ranrahirca. The earthquake which was a magnitude 7.7 lasted for 30-90 seconds, according to eye witnesses and was said to have started gently but to have quickly become more violent (Plafker et al, 1971). The earthquake and a series of aftershocks which ranged in scale from magnitude 4 to magnitude 6.25 on the Richter scale triggered hundreds of landslides and rock falls in a 7500km2 area in the two mountain ranges, the Cordillera Negra to the west and the Cordillera Blanca in the east (Ericksen et al, 1970). Damage to the infrastructure was extensive and was worsened by the fact that many

of the buildings in the area were constructed from adobe mud bricks, a construction style that is exceptionally susceptible to failure during an earthquake. Damage associated with landslides and debris flows occurred where towns had been constructed on top of previous debris flow deposits. Although this study focuses on the area effected by the May 31, 1970 Peru earthquake these considerations apply all areas where earthquake hazards are high and particularly in countries and regions where the infrastructure is poorly developed and the population is less aware of the intrinsic risks. The purpose of this case study is to detail the effects of the 1970 earthquake disaster in Peru, to see what changes can and have been done in order to minimize the death and destruction due to this type of event in the future.

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Location 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Chile Prince William Sound, Alaska Off the West Coast of Northern Sumatra Near the East Coast of Honshu, Japan Kamchatka Date UTC 1960 05 22 1964 03 28 2004 12 26 2011 03 11 1952 11 04 Magnitude 9.5 9.2 9.1 9.0 9.0 Lat. -38.29 61.02 3.30 38.322 52.76 Long. -73.05 -147.65 95.78 142.369 160.06 Reference Kanamori, 1977 Kanamori, 1977 Park et al., 2005 PDE Kanamori, 1977

Figure 1: Table of largest ever recorded earthquakes compiled by the USGS http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/world/10_largest_ world.php

Figure 2: Above, Cross-sectional profile through central Peru showing the shallow hypocenters of earthquakes, characteristic of flat subduction. Abscissa values are distance from coast in km, ordinate values are depth in km. Figure from Rhea et al., 2010

Figure 3: Above, Cross section profile through Ecuador and Northern Peru showing seismic data associated with normal subduction. Yellow triangles are active volcanoes. Abscissa values are distance from coast in km, ordinate values are depth in km Figure from Rhea et al., 2010

Figure 4: Left Map of South America showing location and relative depth of earthquake foci. Red dots are shallow, green are intermediate and blue are deep focus earthquakes. Figure from Rhea et al., 2010

3 deduced from the seismic record, since most of the hypocenters of earthquakes in subduction zones are Geologic Setting: The earthquake of May 31st 1970 occurred off the western coast of South America near the Peruvian town of Chimbote. The western coast of South America is part of the Pacific ring of fire, which refers to the tectonically active border surrounding the Pacific Ocean. The exact mechanics of earthquakes are still poorly understood, but what is clear from data gathered in the past is that the most powerful earthquakes tend to be associated with subduction zones (Rhea et al, 2010). Since subduction is taking place at nearly all of the plate boundaries surrounding the Pacific it follows that most of the largest magnitude earthquakes ever recorded have occurred in subduction zones surrounding the Pacific Ocean (Figure 1). The coast of central Peru is a unique area tectonically, since it is the only location on earth which displays flat subduction, where an oceanic (Nazka) plate underthrusts a continental (South American) plate (Norabuena, 1992) (Figure 2). In all other convergent boundaries involving an oceanic plate and a continental plate the oceanic plate is pushed into the mantle partially melting the subducting slab. In these cases strato-volcanoes form at the surface above the subducting slab due to the rising and eruption of the melt created at depth (Figure 3). The type of subduction can also be Earthquake: within the subducting slab. When the foci of earthquakes in a subduction zone are plotted there is a general relationship between distance inland and depth of the hypocenter (Figure 2, 3, 4). The foci of the earthquakes get deeper as their epicenters move inland, this is due to the fact that most of the earthquakes are focused within the subducting slab. However in central Peru none of this conventional subduction zone evidence is present, indeed normal subduction of the Nazka Plate does take place in southern Peru and in Ecuador but northern and central Peru do not display any of the normal subduction zone volcanism nor does the seismic data agree with normal subduction of an oceanic plate (Hasegawa and Sacks, 1981). In the case of central Peru the evidence from hypocenters of earthquakes suggests that up until about 100km depth the Nazka plate subducts at a normal angle of about 300 but then it bends back to horizontal and continues eastward for approximately another 300km (Norabuena, 1992)(Figure 2). This flat subduction of the Nazka plate generates shallow hypocenters of earthquakes even relatively far inland. Shallow earthquakes are generally more hazardous than deep ones because of the proximity of the hypocenter to the surface.

4 On the afternoon of May 31st 1970 an earthquake occurred off the coast of Peru. The Epicenter of the magnitude 7.7 earthquake was located about 25km west of the coast of central Peru, South America (Plafker et al, 1971). The Hypocenter of the earthquake was at a depth of 56km according to the geodetic survey. It is estimated that the earthquake caused 70,000 deaths in the surrounding areas, destroyed 200,000 homes and left 800,000 people homeless (Cluff, 1971). The astonishing amount of death and damage would have been severely worsened if movement had been close enough to the surface to have caused a tsunami. Since there was no associated tsunami Plafker et al (1971) concluded that fault plane movement must have only occurred at depth with no associated underwater landslides or thrusting. The coastal city of Chimbote located just 25km from the epicenter of the 1970 earthquake was built on a delta plane and much of the city is within 20m of normal sea-level, making this city especially vulnerable to tsunamis. The earthquake lasted an estimated 45 seconds and was followed by several aftershocks which were as large as magnitude 6 on the Richter scale (Plafker et al, 1971). According to Erickson et al (1970) shaking had a pronounced side to side motion that making it hard to move around, however the shaking was not strong enough to throw people to the ground. Most of the damage to infrastructure was concentrated in a 300km long stretch within 165km of coast (Ericksen et al 1970). Debris Flow: The largest debris flow generated by the May 31st earthquake occurred in the valley between the Cordillera Blanca and the Cordillera Negra where the towns of Yungay and Ranrahirca lay (Figure 5). The debris flow was generated from a collapse atop Mount Huascaran which is located on the eastern fringe of the Cordillera Blanca; it is the tallest peak in the mountain range. The Cordillera Blanca is composed primarily of Tertiary granodiorites and Mesozoic marine sediments (Bodenlos and Ericksen, 1955). Granodiorite rocks are composed primarily of felsic minerals such as quartz and plagioclase giving them a large proportion of covalent bonds with Si making them very resistant to both chemical and physical erosion. For this reason granites and granodiorites can often form sheer precipices 1000s of meters tall. The Cordillera Negra to the west are composed primarily of mafic dark minerals. Many landslides were also generated in this mountian chain but none with the same impact associated with that from Mount Huascaran. The rocks of the Cordillera Negra generally fail more easily than those of the Cordillera Blanca because of theyre chemical Fault plane movement as indicated by the hypocenters of the initial earthquake and its aftershocks was along a fault surface approximately 140 km long parallel to the coast and 65 km wide (Plafker et al, 1971).

5 bonding which makes them less resistant to chemical weathering and physical erosion. Mafic rocks tend to have more metals in theyre structure and thus more ionic bonding. The mountains of the Cordillera Negra do not form the same type of oversteepened peaks that can be observed in the Cordillera Blanca, since ionic bonds are much more easily broken due to chemical weathering. amount of momentum as the snow ice and rock virtually free fell for a full kilometer to the base of the cliff at the peak. The flow was able to reach astounding speeds on the order of 200 miles per hour or about 320 kilometers per hour (Cluff, 1970). It was estimated by eyewitnesses that the flow started immediately after or during the earthquake and had reached the town of Yungay within 3 minutes after it had commenced (Plafker et al, 1971). The extreme speeds attained by this debris flow are likely attributed to: the initial free fall of material and the fact that the upper portion of the ground that needed to be covered was a steep glacier offering very little friction to slow the flow, the snow and ice incorporated into the flow likely helped it maintain high speeds by reducing its internal friction (Plafker et al, 1971). The energy of the flow by the time it had reached the towns of Yungay and Ranrahirca was still sufficient to carry several boulders weighing up to 7000 metric tons (Figure 6). The town of Yungay was completely buried under an estimated 5m of debris there are only a few relects of the old town. Since the event a new town has been constructed further to the north off of the debris flow deposits from the 1970 event. The town of Ranrahirca was also mostly buried in the 1970 event, it has also been
Figure 5: View of Mount Huascaran with Yungay, Ranrahirca and the debris flow deposits from Plafker et al., 1971

reconstructed however it still lies on old debris flow deposits (Plafker et al, 1971).

The debris flow started near the peak of Mount Huascaran and gained a considerable

6 building collapse in the study area occurred in Construction: Many of the buildings in the area that was most severely affected by the 1970 Earthquake were constructed with adobe bricks, commonly made of a combination of clay, straw, sand and water. Adobe constructions usually consist of large mud or clay bricks held in place by comparatively weak mortar (usually mud) (Glass et al, 1977). Although adobe constructions do have many advantages as a building material; inexpensive easy to construct and good insulating properties, these constructions are far from ideal during an earthquake. The heavy bricks are easily shaken free of the weak mortar which holds them in place. Glass et al (1977) found while studying the effects in Guatemala of an earthquake of magnitude 7.5 on the Richter scale, that all deaths associated with Conclusions: The west coast of South America is a very tectonically active boundary. Large scale earthquakes will continue to occur in this area as long as subduction continues along this coast. In order to mitigate loss of life and livelihood a few steps need to be taken, some of which are under way already. First, towns and villages should never adobe constructions. While houses that were built in other styles either remained intact or collapsed without causing death. A different choice of building materials may not have helped those that were overcome by the debris flow from Mount Huascaran, but it certainly would have made a significant difference in the death toll of the earthquake as a whole.

Figure 6: Boulder transported by debris flow estimated to weigh over 7000 metric tons. Note meter stick in central photo is 4m tall Figure from Plafker et al., 1971

7 be constructed atop debris flow deposits. These deposits are situated in areas where debris flows have already occurred and will occur again at some point in the future. Furthermore these types of deposits tend to be poorly compacted and uncemented, making them vulnerable to liquefaction amplifying damage during earthquakes. If towns are constructed away from previous debris flow deposits out of the way of future landslides, 10s of thousands of lives can be saved. Second, a more earthquake friendly construction style must be adopted by the people living in high risk areas. The reason why adobe construction is so popular in this part of the world is because it is a very cost effective way of building structures with good insulating properties. Blondet et al. (2003) published a report detailing how to improve adobe brick constructions performance during seismic events. If cost effective alternatives and improvements of this kind can be made readily available to the general populations of these developing countries then it might be possible to prevent deaths associated with building collapse as well as to minimize damage to infrastructure and prevent hundreds of thousands of people from becoming homeless every time an earthquake occurs. Third, general awareness of the hazards associated with living in a tectonically active area should be a priority. If the population knew what were the safest steps to take immediately after an earthquake then loss of life could be minimized. Since the recurrence rate for events of this magnitude is not very high for one particular area the population may be lulled into a sense of security. Ericksen et al. (1970) found that an event of the magnitude of the May 31, 1970, earthquake had not occurred in that area before for at least three generations according to locals. If the villagers in towns such as Yungay or Ranrahirca knew that the safest thing to do in the moments after an earthquake was to move to a specific rally point at high ground then potentially 10s of thousands of lives could have been saved on May 31st 1970.

Sources
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