Europe’s Deadliest Earthquake
The earthquake which wiped out two entire cities
Italy, one of Europe’s largest countries, lies on one of the many micro-plates which make up the much larger tectonic plates. The fact that Italy lies on the Adriatic plate means that earthquakes are a common ocurrence.
The strongest earthquakes happen on convergent plate boundaries, where two or more plates collide, with one being thrust upwards and one downwards. Since the Adriatic plate is a convergent plate boundary, it means that earthquakes in Italy are especially bad, often destroying and killing many people.
Throughout Italy’s history, no earthquake has been as destructive and deadly as the 1908 Messina earthquake, which impacted mainly Messina, Sicily, and Reggio Calabria, Calabria. In fact, this earthquake was so destructive that it is considered the worst earthquake, on record, in the whole of Europe.
The earthquake hit Southern Italy, more specifically the regions of Sicily and Calabria, on the 28th of December in 1908. It struck with a magnitude of 7.1 and was labelled as XI on the Mercalli intensity, meaning the highest possible intensity (extreme). In total, 75,000 to 82,000 lives were lost in the two regions.
The earthquake was due to the fact that Italy also sits along the boundary zone of the African Continental plate, which pushes against the seafloor underneath Italy, causing displacements which turn into earthquakes. It is estimated that there was a blind normal fault in the Strait of Messina. A blind fault is a thrust fault that does not show any sign on the Earth's surface and therefore is “invisible”. The epicenter of this earthquake has been identified as being in the Strait of Messina, and around 9 km (5.5 miles) deep into the crust. The earthquake was so potent that shaking was felt over 400 km (250 miles) away, in Albania and Greece.
The earthquake, not only destroyed large parts of the city but it also caused a tsunami and several fires in the two cities. 12 meter (40 feet) waves struck the cities of Messina and Reggio, killing up to 2,000 people. It also caused landslides in different parts around Reggio Calabria, killing around 600 more people.
Up to 91% of the structures in Messina were completely destroyed or irreparably damaged, and it’s estimated that 75,000 people died just in Messina. In Reggio, it’s estimated that up to 25,000 people died, and its historical center was completely eradicated, both in regards to population and architecture.
The incredibly high death toll is due to two main reasons. One is that both Reggio and Messina were fairly old, and badly built towns. Messina was founded in the 8th century BC, and so was Reggio, due to their ancient history, many of the buildings were not as earthquake-proof as newer construction work was. Furthermore, Southern Italy was largely underfunded by the Italian government, and therefore the quality of construction and materials used was lower. Furthermore, Calabria, and to a lesser extent, Sicily, had been hit by previous earthquakes in 1894, 1905, and just a year before in 1907.
Another reason why so many people died, is because the earthquake happened at night time, and people were asleep, not having time to escape or even react. It was noted that many people were found buried in their own beds, as their houses collapsed on top of them. Several days before the earthquake, the city of Messina counted as many as 160,000 inhabitants within its bounds, and if we take the figure of 75,000, we can see that 46% of the population died, and in fact, it took several years for it to return to normal, with the population in 1921 being only 177,196.
Witness reports from survivors, such as one young doctor, state that:
“the profound silence was broken by an extraordinary noise like the bursting of a thousand bombs, followed by a rushing and torrential rain…sinister whistling sound which was like a thousand red hot irons hissing in the water.”
Furthermore, witness accounts reported that there were three different movements felt on the ground. The first was a back and forth shaking motion, the second a violent upwards thrust, and the third was a circular motion, with the second one being the one that caused the earthquake and the damage.
Ten minutes later, the 12 meter tsunami would hit and kill 2,000 people. It was particularly deadly as many people had gathered on the beach, believing it would be safer there since no building would be able to hit them. The tsunami would then engulf the whole port and three city blocks, with boats causing more destruction as they were brought along from the harbor. Even though the tsunami was less deadly in Messina, it was reported that afterward, the harbor was filled with wreckage and corpses of drowned people and animals.
The entire historic city center of Messina was destroyed, like the Normal cathedral. The shoreline was also altered, causing buildings to collapse. Two railway stations collapsed, killing 348 railway workers. It also destroyed the pristine “palazzetti” (small palaces) which made up one of Messina’s main roads, Corso Vittorio Emanuele. The citadel which overlooked and guarded the harbor was also partially destroyed, and so were many different consulates, like the American, French, and British. Gas tanks that were at the north of the city exploded, killing the few survivors. Fires broke out due to broken gas pipes, which ended up demolishing the City Hall.
Survivors described a near-apocalyptic scene, with disfigured bodies and near-death, maimed citizens yelling for help and pleading for death. People ran around naked, carrying pictures of saints and holding crosses. People searched through debris for a chance to save their loved ones, only to find them already dead.
It is estimated that in Reggio, only 50 houses did not collapse. The historical center was also completely destroyed, including the cathedral, the Aragonese castle, and palaces. Another key thing was that the hospitals were also destroyed, and many doctors died, meaning that a rescue and support operation was near impossible. This was worsened by the fact that most of the officials, such as police or the garrison, were also dead or gravely injured. Prisoners who managed to escape started looting property and robbing corpses and were joined by peasants from nearby villages.
Soon thereafter, martial law was declared by General Feira Di Cossato, and troops were sent in, both to restore order and to help with the rescue operations. Since railway lines and telegraph lines were destroyed, torpedo boats were sent to Nicotera to send news of the disaster to Prime Minister Giovanni Giolliti. Both the Italian navy and army started searching the rubble, looking to treat injured people and provide them with water and food. The Prime Minister declared that any looter should be shot, which included survivors foraging for food. King Victor Emmanuel III and his wife, Queen Elena, arrived two days later to assist the victims.
Shortly thereafter, both the Red Cross, and the British and Russian navies joined in the effort. Several battleships, such as the Tsesarevich, from Russia, and the Exmouth from Britain were ordered to provide aid. The United States Navy and French navy also joined in the efforts.
Messina and Reggio suffered a major depopulation, both from the death toll, but also from survivors settling in different cities, such as Catania and Palermo. This also affected the economy, as workers were needed, but were missing. Craftsmen and other manual laborers were also needed. Luckily, migrants from nearby towns and cities came looking for job opportunities and to help with rebuilding. All the way into the 1950s, families were living in wooden barracks which were erected to house the homeless people after the earthquake.
