Tsunami could 'wipe out' Karachi.It was hit by a tsunami in 1945 that killed at least 4,000 people

After a drill simulating a major earthquake in the Indian Ocean, meteorologists in Pakistan concluded that a tsunami generated by the tremors had the potential to “wipe out” the city of Karachi. According to chief meteorologist Tauseef Alam, an earthquake of a 9.0-magnitude would create waves as high as 23 feet that would reach the city in 90 minutes. Alam cited the example of a similar disaster in 1945 that killed 4,000 people in Karachi. This is the story of that disaster. 4:06am - November 28, 1945 "When the tidal wave struck, thousands of pebbles shot up into the air like volleys of bullets. Villagers snatched at tree-tops as they were tossed about in the mighty rush of the water. The wave struck before dawn and darkness added to the horror and confusion" Eye witness account, Times of India At 04:06am PST on November 28, 1945, an 8.1 magnitude earthquake was generated in the northern Arabian Sea off the Makran coast. The clock tower at the Karachi Municipality Building stopped and the earth rumbled for approximately 30 seconds. The tremors were felt as far away as Calcutta (now Kolkata). According to the Tsunami Society, the epicenter of the quake was estimated at about 408 km SSW of Karachi and as the city settled from the initial shock, a much bigger strike would soon follow. “People were "thrown out of their beds", doors and windows rattled, and window panes broke. The underwater cable link between Karachi and Muscat (Oman) was damaged, disrupting communications.” Eye witness account (Tsunami Society). The earthquake had generated a huge tsunami which “swept the whole of the Arabian Sea coast. The fishing village of Khudi, 48 km west of Karachi, bore the brunt of the waves and its entire population was swept away. Ormara and Pasni was hit by a 15m high wall of water which caused massive destruction. The tsunami reached a maximum run up height of 13m (40 feet) along the Makran coast. The waves destroyed fishing villages and caused great damage to port facilities In Karachi, at least three waves over 2m high, caused heavy damage to the harbour and many lives were lost. The tide continued, but as the water receded it took an even bigger toll on the fishing villages of Keti Bandar. Pakistan has a coastline of about 1046 km along the Arabian Sea. Makran covers a vast area of about 400km long and 250km wide. A subduction region is located about 100km away from Makran coast and was responsible for deadly tsunami in 1945. According to UNESCO’s Oceanographic Commission, the 1945 tsunami was the largest known in the region. Four thousand villagers have died and several villages have been washed away along to the 100-mile coast from Karachi to Keti Bandar. The coast is still strewn with wreckage, with corpses being washed up daily. Times of India report ================ By AFP Published Sep 10, 2014 06:51pm Meteorologists, after carrying out tests, say up to 7m high waves can reach the city in 1.5 hours from Indonesia. AFP/File Photo KARACHI: Pakistan's largest city Karachi, home to around 18 million people, could be “wiped out” by a tsunami, officials said Wednesday after a drill simulating a major earthquake in the Indian Ocean. The test and one carried out a day earlier, simulating another quake off Indonesia, were designed to check an early-warning system set up after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami which killed more than 230,000 people. The exercise organised by the United Nations was based on a hypothetical 9.0-magnitude quake in the Makran Trench, where the Arabian and Eurasian tectonic plates meet, off the coast of Pakistan. “This would create waves of 0.9 to seven metres high (3-23 feet) that could reach Karachi in one and a half hours,” Tauseef Alam, the chief meteorologist who was supervising the tests, told AFP. “This could wipe out the city as the waves would be immensely powerful.” Karachi was hit by a tsunami in 1945 that killed at least 4,000 people, Alam said. A repeat would likely have a devastating effect on Pakistan nationally, since Karachi, the country's main port, accounts for around 42 per cent of national GDP. “The city is vulnerable because there is a chance of another tsunami in the same vicinity but we don’t know when,” Alam said. In the event of a tsunami, real-time data would be sent to the Met Office in Karachi from Indonesian, Australian and Indian centres. An alarm would sound when an alert was issued and the team would start disseminating the data to around a dozen disaster management departments. “Our goal is to ensure the timely and effective notification of tsunamis, to educate communities at risk about safety preparedness and to improve our overall coordination,” Alam said. But it is not clear whether Karachi has a tsunami evacuation plan, or whether one would even be feasible in the chaotic, sprawling city. “We will evaluate what works well, where improvements are needed, make necessary changes and continue to practice,” the meteorologist said. As well as the Makran Trench, Pakistan also straddles the boundary between the Eurasian and Indian plates, and is hit by earthquakes from time to time. A devastating 7.6-magnitude earthquake hit Pakistan-administered Kashmir in October 2005, killing more than 73,000 people and leaving around 3.5 million homeless. And in September last year a 7.7-magnitude hit Awaran district in southwestern Balochistan province, killing 376 people and leaving 100,000 others homeless.

Karachi not prone to major earthquakes, SSUET study claims

Saturday, February 28, 2009
By Perwez Abdullah

Karachi

Contrary to the general notion that Karachi is located on the major earthquake fault lines, researchers at the Sir Syed University of Engineering & Technology (SSUET), have discovered that Karachi is in fact situated along the Minor Earthquake Zone and is not prone to any major or devastating earthquakes.

The Institute of Human Settlement and Environment (IHSE) at the SSUET Department of Civil Engineering has also established that Murray Ridge Area, located about 200 kilometres southwest of Karachi, in the North Arabian Sea is vulnerable to the generation of Tsunami if a major earthquake strikes the region.

Civil Engineering Department Chairman, Dr S.M. Makhdumi, informed The News that IHSE has prepared four reports on disaster management , that include Disaster Preparedness & Development of Warning System for Coastal Region of Pakistan, Global Warming, Planning & Mitigation and Seismic Zones of Pakistan.

Dr Makhdumi said that IHSE that was established in 2001 has been working on the projects that are vital to the general public. “It has undertaken exhaustive scientific studies of natural disasters affecting Sindh and Coastal North Arabian Sea. The study established the vulnerability of coastal waters, south of Karachi, to the occurrence of Tsunami and recommends development of ‘Warning System’ for effective remedial and relief measures necessary to minimise the loss of human lives in case a Tsunami hits the coastal regions of Sindh.”

The IHSE has also updated the existing seismic zone map of Pakistan (1980) on the pattern of Sindh-Balochistan map already published by the university.

The revised Seismic Zone Map of Pakistan, according to Dr Makhdumi, will assist the engineering institutions in Pakistan in revising and updating the building code of the country.

Former Pakistan Meteorological Services Director General, Syed Amir Ahmed Kazmi, who is currently an environment consultant at SSUET, said that the

major seismic fault in Sindh, Sarjan-Jampir Fault, which devastated upper Sindh and buried Moenjodaro some 5000 years ago and remained active for centuries, is (according to the new definition of Active Fault 1986) in the process of stabilisation. “No major earthquake has struck Sindh during the last several centuries”,

Kazmi asserted.

According to Kazmi, the Rann of Kutch area is seismically active and has generated Tsunamis in the past. However, due to the drying up of the sea water in the area around the island, the Rann of Kutch is now a solid mass of land and unlikely to generate Tsunamis in future. “Tsunamis will continue to be generated along the Makran coastal waters in future and cause major damage to Pasni, Gwadar, Jiwani and other towns in the coastal areas of Balochistan. However Tsunamis occurring along Makran Coast are not expected to cause damage to the Karachi coastal region”, Kazmi explained.

Shahid Saleem, Assistant Professor at the SSUET Department of Civil Engineering, and a member of IHSE team talked about the lethal effect that Tsunami could have. “Tsunamis can move at the speed of a hundred miles per hour, and its waves can be as high as 100 feet or more. The time lag between the occurrence of Tsunami and its waves hitting the coast is the controlling factor. This is the time that could wisely be used to minimise the brutal force of Tsunami if a warning system exists in the area”, Saleem emphasised

Pacific Tsunami Warning System, according to Kazmi, has two Warning Systems in Hawaii and Alaska. The United Nations, in collaboration with World Conference on Disaster Reduction (WCDR), had decided to set up a Tsunami Warning System in the Indian Ocean after the devastating Tsunami that hit several countries of the region. The system was installed in 2006 and now 25 countries have joined in. The countries include Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, the Maldives, the Seychelles, Kenya, Tanzania and France (for Réunion), Australia and India.

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Magnitude 2.5 quake jolts Landhi, Korangi
Updated at: 0300 PST, Saturday, March 07, 2009
KARACHI: Low intensity earthquake jolted areas of Karachi including Landhi and Korangi on early Saturday, Geo News reported.

The magnitude was recorded at 2.5 on Richter scale while its epic center lies between Karachi and Thatta, said metrological office.

Tremors sparked panic among people as they came out of their homes being terrified but no loss of life or property was confirmed according to preliminary reports, sources said.


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GEO Pakistan
5.7 earthquake hits Karachi, Balochistan
Updated at: 1338 PST, Wednesday, August 10, 2011
5.7 earthquake hits Karachi, Balochistan KARACHI: An earthquake measuring 5.7 hit different areas of Karachi and Balochistan on Wednesday morning, Geo News reported. According to the meteorological department, the epicenter of the earthquake was Kharan in Balochistan.

The shocks were felt in different areas of Karachi including Clifton, Defence, Sadar, and Kharadar, while in Balochistan shocks were felt in Dalbadin, Khuzdar, Wasik and its surrounding areas.