1921 Lake San Salvador earthquake and tsunami

1921 Lake San Salvador
earthquake and tsunami

Flooding in southern Bautista a few hours after the earthquake and tsunami
San Salvador
Local date	13 June 1921 (1921-06-13)
Local time	11:49 a.m. TSS (TMB–3:30)
Duration	22 seconds
Magnitude	8.1 Mw
Depth	Unknown
Epicenter	43°33′31″S 98°0′11″E
Fault	Central Lake Fault
Type	Strike-slip, possibly caused by underwater volcanic activity
Areas affected	Central Creeperopolis, mostly in coastal cities on Lake San Salvador
Total damage	₡550 million pesos (equivalent to ₵1.2 billion credits in 2023)
Max. intensity	MMI IX (Violent)
Tsunami	Up to 30–40 feet (9.1–12.2 m) high
Casualties	25,000+ killed ~30,000 injured 100,000–200,000 displaced

On 13 June 1921 at 11:49 TSS (15:19 TMB), a M_w  8.1 earthquake occurred in Lake San Salvador, Creeperopolis. The earthquake, which lasted 22 seconds and is ranked as having been a IX on the modified intensity scale, caused a tsunami which impacted settlements around the lake. In Creeperopolis, the earthquake and tsunami are commonly referred to as The Great Tragedy (Creeperian: Լա'Գրան Տրագեդիա / La'Gran Tragedia) or by the numeronym 12J (12Ջ).

The earthquake was caused by the release of energy along the Central Lake Fault, a strike-slip fault line located almost entirely under Lake San Salvador. The earthquake subsequently caused the formation of a tsunami up to 30–40 feet (9.1–12.2 m) high which impacted settlements along the lake's shoreline. Contemporary scientists believed that the tsunami was triggered by a meteorite impact over the lake and the earthquake was caused by the shockwave. In the 1960s, seismologists identified the existence of the Central Lake Fault and attributed the disaster to the release of energy along the strike-slip fault line possibly triggered by volcanic activity at the lake floor, however, no definitive evidence volcanic activity triggering the earthquake has been confirmed.

The earthquake and tsunami killed a combined 25,000 people, injured 30,000 more, and displaced between 100,000 and 200,000 people. The tsunami caused the majority of the damages and casualties, reaching up to 2.5 miles (4.0 km) inland. Cities along the lake such as Bautista, Ciudad del Lago, La'Puerta, La'Victoria, San Salvador del Norte, Terrarote, and Vallenar were heavily damaged by the tsunami and portions of the cities remained flooded for months. Parts of northern San Salvador — the country's largest and capital city — were also damaged by the tsunami. Contemporary sources criticized the government's response to the disaster as being inadequate and unorganized, and according to Creeperian historian Vidal Anaya Flores, the disaster "permanently ruined" ("արրփինո պերմանենտեմենտե") the reputation of the National Liberal Party, the then-ruling political party.

Background

Seismic activity is common in Creeperopolis due to the country's location between several tectonic plate boundaries, however, most major earthquakes occur near these tectonic plate boundaries. In the 1910s, as the theory of plate tectonics began to form, Creeperian scientists hypothesized that earthquakes could only occur near a tectonic plate boundary or due to a catastrophic event such as a volcanic eruption of meteorite impact event. Several earthquakes had occurred around Lake San Salvador, the largest lake in Creeperopolis located in the country's center, and scientists attributed the earthquakes as having been triggered by such volcanic eruptions or meteorite impacts.

Earthquakes over magnitude 5.0 occur near and around Lake San Salvador around five times per year. Earthquakes over magnitude 6.0 occur around once every 2 to 5 years, while earthquakes over magnitude 7.0 occur once every 25 to 100 years. Earthquakes over magnitude 8.0 occur once every 400 to 1,000 years, making such strong earthquakes exceptionally rare. Earthquakes with a magnitude 7.5 and above generally produce tsunamis, and three tsunami-like events have been recorded occurring in Lake San Salvador in conjunction with seismic events since 793.

Earthquake and geology

The 1921 Lake San Salvador earthquake occurred on 13 June at at 11:49 TSS (15:19 TMB) and lasted for 22 seconds. It was recorded as a 8.1 magnitude earthquake and was ranked as having been a IX out of XII on the modified intensity scale. The earthquake's epicenter was approximately 98.78 miles (158.97 km) from San Salvador, Creeperopolis' largest and capital city. It occurred at an unknown depth. According to contemporary news reporting, the earthquake was felt as far away as Adolfosburgo, over 300 miles (480 km) away from the epicenter.

A dead horse and an overturned trolley in Bautista

A ruined street in Terrarote

During the 1910s and 1920s, Creeperian scientists were unaware of the existence of the Central Lake Fault, a strike-slip fault located almost entirely under Lake San Salvador. They further believed that fault lines could only form near a tectonic plate boundary. A few days after the earthquake, scientists attributed the earthquake and tsunami to a meteorite impact somewhere over Lake San Salvador. They ruled out volcanic activity as there were no reports made of any volcanic activity around the lake. A minority of scientists criticized the attribution, arguing that there was similarly no reports made of a meteorite impact over the lake. This criticism was dismissed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs which argued that Lake San Salvador was so large that it was possible that such a meteorite impact could go unreported.

The Central Lake Fault was not discovered until 1961. The following year, Creeperian seismologists published a study which attributed the 1921 Lake San Salvador earthquake to the release of energy along the Central Lake Fault. The study rejected 1921 attribution to a meteorite strike, concurring with the minority criticism of no evidence of such an impact event. The study did, however, leave an open-ended possibility that the release of energy was caused by volcanic activity on the floor of Lake San Salvador, but the study stated that it did not have any definitive evidence to support this theory.

Damage and casualties

During the 22 seconds of seismic activity, several settlements on Lake San Salvador experienced moderate to severe damage, while settlements further away from the lake experienced little to no damage. According to news reports made a few days after the earthquake, no more than 200 people died during the earthquake, most of whom were killed by falling debris or suffocated while trapped under rubble. Around 1,000 people were injured, and tens of thousands of people had their homes destroyed.

The subsequent tsunami, which struck coastal areas around Lake San Salvador 10 minutes to 1 hour after the initial earthquake, was responsible for the vast majority of damage and casualties, reaching up to 2.5 miles (4.0 km) inland. The tsunami destroyed tens to hundreds of thousands of homes and buildings resulting in upwards of 200,000 people being internally displaced. In total, both events killed over 25,000 people combined and a further 30,000 were injured. In 1923, the Bureau of Natural Disaster Recovery estimated that earthquake and tsunami caused a combined ₡550 million pesos worth of damage, equivalent to ₡9.6 billion colóns or ₵1.2 billion credits in 2023.

Death of Inhué Ordóñez Yepes

Inhué Ordóñez Yepes (left) reviewing a column of soldiers in La'Victoria half an hour before the earthquake.

Several members of the Creeperian National Parliament from both the Creeperian Front and the Popular Front called for an emergency session to be held to organize a response to the earthquake and tsunami, but Deputy Prime Minister Alfonso Quiñónez Molina and First Secretary Felipe Ureña Azaña stated that they were awaiting for such a session to be called for by Prime Minister Inhué Ordóñez Yepes. Ordóñez Yepes was in La'Victoria at the time of the earthquake to commemorate the 596th anniversary of the end of the Fall of Almadinat Almuqadasa. He survived the earthquake and was leading rescue efforts in La'Victoria, however, he was killed by the tsunami as the city had not yet been notified of the threat of a tsunami.

The Creeperian government did not find out that Ordóñez Yepes was killed until 14 June when his body was recovered by the Creeperian Army. Ordóñez Yepes' death led to Quiñónez Molina and Ureña Azaña convoking an emergency session to elect a new prime minister, and Quiñónez Molina was elected as the country's new prime minister on 15 June. Quiñónez Molina issued an emergency decree ordering seven days of national mourning for Ordóñez Yepes. The press and politicians severely criticized the government's decision to not call for an emergency session until after Ordóñez Yepes' death and for calling for a period of national mourning for Ordóñez Yepes rather than for all those killed by the disaster.

Relief efforts

Government response

Jackian news reel of damages and relief work in Vallenar

After the earthquake, local governments initiated operations to rescue people trapped underneath rubble and debris, unaware that the coastal areas were under threat of being hit by a tsunami. As a result, many civilians and rescuers were killed by the tsunami as they were caught unaware and unable to get out of its path. The tsunami disrupted practically every earthquake recovery operation. The Creeperian national government was mobilizing soldiers to support the local rescue efforts, but once reports of the tsunami and heavy flooding began to reach San Salvador, the government placed the soldiers on standby until further notice.

News coverage

A photograph of an accused thief executed by soldiers during relief efforts which caused public outrage

The press' reaction to the earthquake and tsunami was quick, and news about the disaster was available on virtually every Creeperian newspaper across the country by the evening on 13 June. Images of the destruction caused by the earthquake and tsunami circulated and led to public outcry at the devastation caused. To prevent national unrest, the Creeperian government ordered newspapers to not publish images of the disaster and censor its descriptions of the damage caused under threat of criminal charges of inciting unrest.

After the newspapers were ordered by the government to censor its publications, several prominent national newspapers openly attacked the government's order and publicly defied the order by continuing to publish photos of the disaster. On 16 June, a man in San Salvador del Norte was accused of theft and looting and was summarily executed by the Creeperian Army. Photographs of the incident were widely published and protests and riots erupted in several Creeperian cities against the government's disaster recovery efforts.

The Gaceta Creeperiano criticized the government's response as "abhorrently incompetent" ("aborreciblemente incompetente"), La'Tribuna de La'Victoria described it as "a total failure" ("un fracaso total"), and La'Prensa Nacional called it "a national disgrace" ("una desgracia nacional"). These same newspapers conversely praised the relief works of independent organizations as being better organized than that of the government.

Aftermath

Political ramifications

The response from the National Liberals has been a disgrace. (La'respuesa de los'Liberales Nacionales ha sido una desgracia.)

Édgar Cazalla Beldad, secretary-general of the Creeperian Socialist Party, 19 June 1921

The National Liberal Party, of which both Quiñónez Molina and Ureña Azaña were members, came under heavy scrutiny for their poor response to the disaster.

In the October 1921 general election, the National Liberal Party lost 53 of its 76 seats in the Creeperian National Parliament, most of which were won by the Creeperian Socialist Party. The National Liberals also lost their control over parliament to the Catholic Royalist Party and became a part of the political opposition. According to Creeperian historian Vidal Anaya Flores, the disaster and the government's poor response to it "permanently ruined" ("արրփինո պերմանենտեմենտե") the public image of the National Liberal party which did not hold any major government position for the remainder of the Second Parliamentary Era.

In popular culture

The disaster has been depicted or dramatized in several films and television shows. It has also been the subject of several books, poems, and other works of literature, often being depicted as a watershed event.

See also

• List of earthquakes in Creeperopolis
• Other 8.0+ magnitude earthquakes in Lake San Salvador
  • 793 Lake San Salvador earthquake
  • 1121 Lake San Salvador earthquake
  • 1589 Lake San Salvador earthquake