June 22, 1939 Earthquake: Accra, Ghana

June 22, 1939, Ghana; [19:19:26 UTC, 5.18 S, 0.13 W, M=6.3, depth 13 km]. The earthquake on the evening of 22 June 1939 caused greatest damage in the Accra area, between the coast, Christiansborg, Kwasiman, Weija and Fette. Many adobe houses and some better buildings collapsed; there were 22 people killed and about 130 injured. A damage survey in the Accra region shows that nearly 1500 houses had to be demolished and that over 600 were uninhabitable until they had been repaired. Mud houses suffered most and well constructed concrete buildings least. Damage extended about 100 km from Accra with isolated foundation failures due to liquefaction, particularly around the Sakumo lagoon and along the coast.

...The instrumental surface-wave magnitude estimated from 17 stations was 6.4 (+0.2) and the body-wave magnitude was 6.8 (+0.3) from four stations.

The earthquake resulted in a prominent zone of ground rupture which extended in a N40 deg E direction over a distance of about 20 km between Weija and Fette on the coast, with the south-east side downthrown by as much as 40 cm. ...If it is assumed that the zone of ground rupture is associated with the causative fault of this earthquake, the epicentre of the event should be near 5.52 N, 0.32 W, about 20 km west of Accra, on land. The earthquake was followed by many aftershocks, the strongest of which occurred on 18 August and had a magnitude Ms = 5.3, m = 6.0. It caused additional damage mainly in the north-east of Accra).

(above from ref #1214)

The earthquake of 22nd June, 1939, occurred at approximately 7.20 p.m. (G.M.T.) and was felt for about 20-30 seconds at Accra. The intensity of the shock was greatest in the area between Accra, Weija and Fete, and particularly around Nyanyanu and Tokuse and new the Sakume lagoon, where the intensity reached 9 on the modified Mercalli Scale used in this report.

The greatest damage to life and property occurred in Accra, the capital of the Gold Coast, where 16 people were killed and 133 injured, and hundreds of thousands of pounds damage was done to buildings. One person was killed and two wounded at Oblogo and a few people were injured in other towns and villages. Fortunately, the loss of life was smaller than might have been expected from the severity of the shock and the density of the population of Accra. This was largely due to the fact that the shock occurred at a time when everyone was awake and many were out of doors, and because there were no outbreaks of fire such as usually accompany severe earthquakes. The earthquake was preceded and followed by heavy falls of rain, 4.16 inches being recorded at Accra on 25th June.

The earthquake was felt by persons over an area of approximately 300,000 square miles, and at places mare than 500 miles from Accra. As the epicenter was probably out to sea some 25 miles from Accra it is likely that it would have been felt over an area of approximately 600,000 square miles if the whole of the area had been populated land.

(above from ref #1077)

The earthquake was felt throughout the country but the highest intensity of VIII was felt in Accra. Seventeen people were killed, 133 injured, and an estimated one million pounds worth of damage done to buildings in Accra (Junner, 1941). Several buildings were destroyed including Osu Castle, the seat of government, which had its roof ripped off. According to Amponsah (2004), the most prominent geological effect of the 1939 earthquake was a line of fissures in the alluvium bordering the Akwapim scarp between Weija and Fete.

(above from ref #13028)

1939 June 22, 19:19:32.98 UTC, 5.568 N 0.625 W, magnitude 6.4 Mw (ref #10476)

1939 June 22, Ghana, magnitude 6.5, 18 deaths. (ref #1002)

1939 June 22, Accra, Ghana, 66 deaths. (ref #1051)