November 20, 1822 Earthquake: Valparaiso, Quillota, Concon, Aconcagua, Chile

1822, Nov. 19, after 22:30 local time [02:30 UTC]. There was a destructive earthquake [33S, 72W, mag 7.5] in Valparaiso. The quake was preceded by foreshocks from the 14th to the 17th. The earthquake continued 2.5 to 3 min and the strongest vibrations lasted 40 sec. The epicenter was located 25-30 km to the north or northeast of Valparaiso. At the time of the most severe shocks, the ocean receded in the epicentral zone, only to rise and advance upon the shore again and again.In Concon, three shocks were felt within a period of 5 minutes. The second shock was the strongest and lasted 2 min. It was accompanied by a frightening rumbling sound which seemed to originate below ground. Strange atmospheric glows may have been recorded as well. One building sustained broken windows and damaged roof tiles. Other houses and a mill were damaged more severely. The canal connecting the mill with the River Aconcagua was filled with material from collapsed river banks, and the ground became littered with cracks of different dimensions.

In Qintero, the vibrations shook the palms and caused them to lean permanently. Huge cracks appeared along the lakeshore, and almost all the houses were damaged and became uninhabitable. There were fires and casualties. In Casablanca, no houses remained standing. In Quillota, many houses were destroyed and the remainder were damaged. Only 20 houses and one church remained standing. Vina del Mar suffered almost complete destruction. The whole plain appeared to be strewn with cones of small sand volcanoes of a height of 0.3-1.2 m. Damage was recorded in Limache and in La Ligua. Close to 200 casualties were recorded in the above areas. In Valparaiso, most of the public buildings and almost 700 private houses were destroyed. All bell towers and turrets collapsed. The port area of Almendral, situated on alluvial soil, sustained severe damage. All houses built of mud bricks disintegrated. 72 persons (over 300, according to other sources) perished and over 200 were injured, mostly in brick buildings. Wooden houses were not damaged, but old stone fortifications sustained some damage. The stream discharge in Valparaiso increased, and new streams appeared but soon dried up.

The shore at Valparaiso rose approximately 1m [This is disputed by some sources.] Cracks appeared in coastal granite cliffs, and rockslides took place.

At Concon, the sea coast rose 0.3-1.2m. The maximum rise probably averaged 1.5-2m, and it probably occurred 3-5km from shore. As a result of the lifting of the ocean floor, numerous rocks appeared above the water level in areas off Valparaiso, Concon and Quintero. The shore eventually slowly subsided, returning to its pre-earthquake level.

Miners in the gold mines of El Bronse in Petorgue worked at a depth of 170m at the time of the earthquake. The earthquake caused cave-ins in the shafts and some of the miners were trapped in the lateral drifts and perished. In Illapel, all the churches were damaged; and severe damage was caused in San Felipe.

In Santiago, no one was killed, but about 30 public buildings were damaged. The earthquake caused the same amount of damage in Aconcagua.

Some buildings were damaged in Melipilla. The earthquake was felt in San Jose de Maipo, San Fernando, Talka, Rancaqua and Concepcion, but no damage was recorded. To the south, the quake was recorded as far as Valdivia; to the east, as far as Mendosa, Cordoba and San Juan. In the north the earthquake was felt up to Copiapo. According to some data, a seaquake [T-phase] was recorded on vessels anchored in Callao.

Repeated tremors in the epicentral zone of the earthquake were recorded at least until Oct 1822.

(above from ref #415)

1822, Nov 19 10:15 pm local time. 72 people were killed in Valpariso, largely in adobe buildings. (ref #252)

1822 Nov 19. Valparaiso, 72 dead. (ref #1002)

1822 Nov 20 02:30 UTC. 33.050N, 71.63W, mag. 8.5 (Ref #1206)

1822 Nov 20 03:01 UTC (Ref #79)