BBC This Day in 1972 –
1972: Earthquake wreaks devastation in
Ten thousand people are
feared dead after a two-hour earthquake ripped through the Nicaraguan capital
of
Initial reports suggest whole communities have been wiped
out as an estimated 80% of buildings have been flattened with little hope of
finding survivors.
The earthquake which reached 6.5 on the Richter Scale has sparked huge fires causing fears those who
survived the initial attack may not escape the flames.
Telegraph and telephone links have also been severed.
Aid workers are trying to clear the area to prevent the
spread of diseases such as typhoid so that experts can search for survivors and
get food and water to the hundreds now homeless.
Evacuation
Among the ruins and rubble are two of the city's three main
hospitals.
Relief workers at the scene are trying to bury the dead in
makeshift graves to curb a growing stench.
An evacuation order has been placed on the city and
authorities are expected to close off the area while a clean-up operation takes
place.
The city is still affected by occasional tremors, and cracks
in the road are hampering emergency relief efforts.
Officials have said they need medical aid and anaesthetic more than anything else at present.
The
The capital city is above a geological fault which has made
it susceptible to tremors and earthquakes.
Managua has twice been destroyed in earthquakes in 76 years,
leading to speculation the country may have to move its capital.
Parts of the country have already suffered the worst drought
of the century this year.
And the partial failure of the cotton crop, which with
coffee is the staple of the Nicaraguan economy, has led to unemployment and
poverty.