Today marks 27th anniversary of Spitak earthquake
Today, December 7, marks the 27th anniversary of the devastating earthquake in Armenia that claimed over 25 thousand lives. The earthquake hit 40% of Armenia’s territory, including 21 cities and 342 villages. The cities of Leninakan (presently Gyumri) and Spitak were razed to the ground.
The earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale struck the northwest of Armenia on December 7, 1988, at 11:41 am local time. It lasted 7.5 seconds and left 25 thousand people dead, about 110 thousand injured, and 514 thousand homeless.
One hundred and thirteen countries sent substantial amounts of humanitarian aid to Armenia in the form of rescue equipment, search teams and medical supplies, while private donations and assistance from non-governmental organizations also had a large part of the international effort.