1935 Timiskaming earthquake


The 1935 Temiskamingue earthquake occurred on November 1 with a moment magnitude of 6.1 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII. The event took place in the Western Quebec Seismic Zone in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region of Quebec.

Earthquake

The earthquake was a result of movement on a moderately dipping thrust fault, interpreted to represent reactivation of one the extensional faults associated with the Timiskaming Graben. It had an epicentre approximately northeast of Témiscaming, Quebec. It occurred at 1:03 a.m. ET, the earthquake was felt over a wide swath of North America, extending west to Fort William, east to Fredericton, New Brunswick, north to James Bay and south as far as Kentucky and West Virginia. Occasional aftershocks were reported for several months.

Damage

Although the most significant damage connected to the earthquake was to chimneys, both in the immediate area and as far south as North Bay and Mattawa, a railroad embankment near Parent, away, also collapsed. Researcher E. A. Hodgson later concluded that the embankment slide was already imminent, and was merely hastened by the vibrations. Some rockfalls and structural cracks were also reported, although there were few major structural collapses aside from the Parent embankment. The relative lack of major damage, despite the fact that it was a strong earthquake, has been attributed primarily to the sparseness of the area's population.

Other events

The 2000 Kipawa earthquake on January 1, with a magnitude of 5.2, had its epicentre at Lake Kipawa, very near the epicentre of the 1935 quake.