October 12, 1992 Earthquake: Cairo, Egypt

1992, October 10. Egypt. A relatively small-magnitude earthquake, with an epicenter about 10 km south of Old Cairo, caused a disproportionate amount of damage (estimated at [£ 200 million), and the loss of many lives. The shock was strongly felt and caused sporadic damage and loss of life in the Delta, around Zagazig. Damage extended

throughout the Faiyum and as far south as Beni Suef

and Minya. The area mostly affected was Cairo

(pop. 14 million), in particular Old Cairo, Bulaq and

the region to the south, along the west bank of the Nile

to Gerza (Jirza) and El Rauda. In all, 350 buildings

collapsed completely and 9000 were irreparably damaged,

killing 545 people and injuring 6512. Many of the casualties in Cairo were victims of panic-strieken

stampedes of people rushing from buildings. About 350

schools and 216 mosques were ruined, and about 50,000 people were made homeless.

Much of the destruction was due to the high vulnerability of the aging urban and rural building stock in the region, and to the low standards of construction of modern houses. Properly designed and built engineering structures, high-rise buildings, bridges and dams suffered very little or no damage. Terminal walls at Cairo airport cracked and windows were smashed, but f1ights were unaffected. Telephone and power lines were cut and water mains were wrecked in many regions of Egypt.

Many historical monuments suffered different

degrees of damage, but none collapsed completely.

Thus the upper part of one of the minarets of al-Azhar

mosque collapsed and the shaft of the minaret structure

was damaged. The arch and abutments of the Qausun Gate at al-Megherbelin were badly cracked and the wall under the dome of the Jani Bek mosque in the same district collapsed. Here also part of the minaret of the mosque of al-Hadi al-Yusufi fell, and the wall of the structure was fissured. The shock caused the separation of the minaret from the structure of the mosque of Sultan al-Ghauri, the walls of which were badly cracked. The walls of the Qayitbey mosque were slightly damaged and the first fioor of the mosque of

the Sabil of Muhammad 'Ali collapsed. The roofs and part of the walls of the mosques of al-Tashtushi and al-Fakahani collapsed. The outer walls and internal arches of the mosque of 'Arnr b. al-'As in Fustat were badly shattered. Some of the walls of the 'Abdin palace were also badly damaged, as were various buildings in the citadel. Ornate finials fell from the upper parts ofmany minarets, causing secondary damage to adjacent houses. Of the pre-Islamic

monuments, a large block was dislodged from the Great

Pyramid at Giza and rolled to the ground, while some

other monuments in Saqqara suffered minor cracking.

At a few places near the Nile, at Manshiyat Fadil and

Dahshur, the shock caused some localised liquefaction

and triggered small rockfalls from Mt Muqattam.

The earthquake was felt in Alexandria, Port Said and southern Israel, and as far south as Asyur, It was followed

by many small aftershocks, some of which caused additional damage and loss of life.

(above from reference #3845)

1992, October 10. 552 deaths and $300.0 million damage. (reference #1053)

1992, October 10. 561 deaths, 9929 injuries, and $151.2 million damage. (reference #1250)

1992, October 10. Cairo, 561 deaths, $1,200 million damage. (reference #1051)