African countries exposed to the highest risk are Morocco and Algeria, and countries that straddle the East African Rift.
Earthquakes are usually divided into the following categories: micro M7 have been recorded since 1900, the largest being a M7.3 event in Tanzania in 1910. Magnitude (M) is a measure of the energy released by the earthquake. It is the strongest earthquake to shake South Africa since measurements began around 1900. The Ceres-Tulbagh earthquake measured 6.3 on the Richter magnitude scale. The aftershocks continued and could be felt for several months. Thousands were left homeless and landslides ignited wildfires.
Many homes were destroyed and 12 people died – among them children at the Steinthal children’s home. The news soon broke that a deadly earthquake had struck the Ceres-Tulbagh district, some 120 km away. Alarmed, my family and I fled out of doors our neighbours did the same. At about 10pm on 29 September 1969, our house started to shake violently. There are three important issues to consider when thinking about quakes: what causes them how to prepare and plan for them and, how to move on afterwards.įifty years ago I was a teenager growing up in Cape Town. 50 years on: What we learned from South Africa’s biggest quake
