October 20, 1687 Earthquake: Lima, Peru

1687 (erroneously 1690), October 20. Very strong earthquakes felt in the Lima area. They began 04:00 (Local time) and were accompanied by underground rumbling. Many houses were destroyed and many persons perished under the wreckage. Another shock, preceded by the same kind of rumbling, occurred at 05:00 (Local time). At 06:00 (or 06:30, Local time), prolonged tremors recurred and they were accompanied by a terrible boom. Church bells rang by themselves, and buildings that were still standing were destroyed. However, there were few casualties, since the people, hearing the rumblings, ran into the streets. A total of 100 persons perished in Lima.Damage from this earthquake was reported as far away as 700 km south of Lima. Settlements along the rivers Ica, Palca, Nasca and Camana suffered particularly heavy damage. A third earthquake inflicted serious damage to houses and churches of Arequipa. Large crevasses, many kilometres long, appeared in the earth between Ica and Canete. The damage in Pisco reflected the strong vibrations the area had suffered. The earthquake was felt throughout Peru, and according to Montessus de Ballore (1888) it was felt in Guatemala.

The vessel on which L. Vafer was sailing, about 600 km from shore at 12 deg 30 min S, experienced a severe seaquake, and several sailors were thrown from their hammocks and the usual green color of the sea water appeared white. When it was scooped up, it became clear it was mixed with sand.

According to the testimony of Captain Forster of the vessel "Davis," the seaquake was felt at 1800 km (450 leagues) from shore.

The sea flooded the coast between Chancay and Arequipa.

In all 5000 persons perished as a result of the earthquake and tsunami.

The area affected by the earthquake failed to produce wheat crops for a long time (40 years), and the ground had to be planted with lucerne and sugar cane.

The tsunami reached the northeast shore of the island of Honshu. It was at Kamaishi (Iwate prefecture) on October 22 that 12 or 13 waves with a height of 0.5 m were observed. On the island of Okinawa (Ryukyu Island), three unusual waves were recorded on October 22 between 02:00 and 03:00 in the morning.

1682, October 19 (about 04:00 local time). The city of Lima was almost completely destroyed by an earthquake. During the 24 hours following the earthquake another twenty shocks were felt. [the year must be in error]

1686. There was "a terrible earthquake in Chile, which affected the country in a north-south direction for 1200 km, toppling mountains, changing the course of rivers and resulting in the inundation and destruction of towns" [reference is to the tsunami of 20.X.1687.]

(above from reference #415)

Different Reports of Epicenters, Magnitudes and Effects

DateLatitudeLongitudeDepth (km)MagnitudeIntensityTotal

DeathsReference #Oct 20 10:30 UTC12.8S77W6001111Oct 20 10:30 UTC13.2S76.5W309.091220Oct 2013.5S76.5W8.5552Oct 2015S75W92001102Oct 20 11:30 UTC15.2S75.9W287.6101208Oct 20 04:00 Local Time5000415