This Day in History December 27, 1939

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On this date in 1939, a horrible earthquake hit the province of Erzincan in eastern Turkey.  It happened at 1:57 A.M., and there were a total of seven shocks--one measured 7.8-8.  This was the most powerful earthquake in recent history.  At first, only 8000 were reported dead, but by the next day, 20,000 were reported dead.  By January 15, 33,000 were dead.  Some of that was due to blizzards and high rains and floods.

For more information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1939_Erzincan_earthquake
http://mceer.buffalo.edu/infoservice/Reference_Services/turkey-major-earthquakes.asp