DISASTER HISTORY OF THE REPUBLIC OF PERILO
2006-11-05 CRIPPLE CREEK MINE DISASTER (2006 CRIPPLE CREEK MINA MAL-ACIDE)
At 0841 on 2006-11-05 the Geological Survey detected a magnitude 2.9 earthquake with an epicenter in the Smoke Valley-Mount Moriah Complex. This was followed at 0845 by a bump in the Cripple Creek Mine that collapsed sections of the mine's Shafts 3 and 4. Sixteen miners escaped from the workings, 4 of whom were injured, and 64 were trapped below ground. Contact was established with 4 of these miners using the mine's communications system.
Mine staff immediately formed expedient rescue teams and attempted to penetrate the mine; unfortunately part of the mine's rescue team was below ground and were among those trapped. The first surface resources that responded were the Cripple Creek Department of Fire and the Cripple Creek First Aid Squad. The Ministry of Extreme Situations coordinated immediate hospital status checks from the primary hospitals that could accept victims - Copeland National medical Center, Fort Frank Hospital, and the Northern Provincial Hospital. The National Mine Rescue Service dispatched mine rescue teams from International Borax and Victoria Coal. These arrived on scene shortly after 0100 on 2006-11-06 and relieved the expedient teams from Cripple Creek. Aeromedical Helicopters from Copeland National Medical Center and search and rescue helicopters from the 4th Air Rescue Squadron forward staged to Cripple Creek to provide air evacuation of casualties when needed. A Flying Column from Saint Randulf the Bishop arrived at approximately 0500 to provided additional first aid capacity, and the Society of Morticians trailer and disaster team arrived at approximately 0700 to assist with any fatalities.
By 1200 on 2006-11-06 mine rescue teams reached the four trapped miners with whom communication had been maintained overnight. Two of these miners with significant injuries were evacuated by helicopter to the Northern Provincial Hospital. However, these were the last miners to come out of the mine alive. The remains of 60 others were extricated over the next three weeks, having been trapped in a massive roof collapse.
2003-12-25 MOUNT MORIAH ERUPTION (2003 MORIAH BUNO EXANTEMA)
A series of small earthquakes in November and early December signaled a return to activity for Mount Moriah, dormant since the 1952 eruption. Increases in activity on 2003-12-23, accompanied by tornillo seismic signatures resulted in orders to evacuate the approximately 500 persons who lived and farmed near the northeast, north, and northwest flanks of the volcano. At 2003-12-25T0630 an eruption commenced with expulsion of blocks and volcanic bombs, followed by a series of pyroclastic flows down the northwest flank, and ashfall that covered the immediate area of the volcano. Activity continued until 2004-01-19. There were no fatalities or significant injuries, although property and agricultural damage was assessed at 500,000 Db.
2000-07-13 CORONA EXPLORER GROUNDING (2000 CORONA EXPLORER BENTO-BATE)
The tanker Corona Explorer dragged her anchors, grounded, and broke apart during a gale while anchored off Petroport waiting for clearance to dock at the oil terminal. The Corona Explorer was a double hulled, very large crude carrier, of 298,000 dead weight tons, 322 meters in length with a beam of 58 meters and a draft of 22 meters, and a carrying capacity of 343,000 cubic meters. As the vessel broke up it spilled approximately 2 million barrels of oil, creating a slick that fouled the sea coast as far as Ashby and Trixx Point. An estimated 185,000 sea birds and marine mammals were killed, and coastal fisheries and shellfish beds off the mouths of the Big Muddy Delta were devastated. As of 2007 fish and shellfish harvests had only reached 50 percent of their pre-Corona Explorer productivity.
1997-04-01 APRIL 1ST STORM (1997 NUMERA MO MENO TETRA TEMPESTU)
On 1997-04-01 through 1997-04-04 a major Easter tracked offshore along the coast of the Republic, subjecting the coast to prolonged storm driven high tides through 6 tide cycles, significant beach erosion, coastal flooding in low lying areas, and inland flooding from heavy rains as far as the Ossippee Ridge. Storm surge overwashed Daca, Lopez, and Lawrence Islands in places, and flooded the town of Overwash. Winds reached Beaufort Scale Force 11. Casualties included 22 dead, 47 missing, and 103 injured. Roads on the barrier islands and Trixx Point were washed away. Some 57 fishing boats and the coastal packet ship MV Hungaria were lost. The MV Hungaria dragged her anchors and was driven ashore 2 miles east of Ashby, but her crew was successfully rescued using breeches buoy and lifecar systems deployed by Coast Guard personnel. Telephone communications throughout the region were lost for a week, and road access to more remote settlements took as long as 6 months to restore as some 93 road and rail bridges were damaged. The coastal shellfish industry was severely impacted, and local oyster beds all along the western coast took more than two years to recover. The storm was classed as intensity 4 on the Dolan-Davis Nor'easter Intensity Scale.
1996-05-19 GLENCOE AIRPORT DISASTER (1996 GLENCOE AEROPORTU MAL-ACIDE)
At 0845 an International World Airways Boeing 707-120B with 143 passengers and crew aboard was on an instrument approach to Ent Field's runway 09R. Airport conditions were reported as winds of 2 knots or less, ceiling indeterminate, patchy fog with visibility of 2 miles, obscured in dense fog patches. The crew of a Trans Pacific Airlines Boeing 737-300, the Miyamoto Musashi, was cleared by the control tower for departure on runway 09L, but apparently turned onto the wrong runway in the fog. As the Trans Pacific flight started its takeoff roll, the International World Airways aircraft descended on top of it. In the ensuing collision and fire on the ground, 212 people died (143 on the Boeing 707 and 69 on the Boeing 737), with 1 survivor.
1986-09-02 DESPERATION FLASH FLOOD (1986 DESPERATION RAPIDI FLU)
Heavy rain deposited 7 inches of water in a 6 hour period in the Northern Massif on the morning and early afternoon of 1986-09-02. The runoff channeled down stream beds and narrow canyons to the north and east of the village of Desperation. By 1500 Lacerte's Creek, the primary watercourse running through the village was overflowing, and within 15 minutes the village center was completely underwater. Resident's described the onset of flooding as a wall of water emerging from the two canyons on the northeast side of the village. Every building suffered some damage, and 32 were completely swept away, with debris being found as far as 50 miles downstream. Flooding extended as far south as Tractenburg. Approximately 103 people were killed, with the remains of 42 never being recovered, and over 400 were injured or suffered from hypothermia. Damaged caused by the flood was estimated at 13,000,000 Db.
1982-08-15 THE GREAT FIRE (1982 MEGA PIRO)
A series of small fires smoldered in the Great Forest 75 miles due east of Lakeside for approximately one month in the hot and dry summer of 1982. Rapid development into a major conflagration was facilitated on 1982-08-15 by the passage of a thunderstorm line, which generated winds that fanned the existing fires and lightning that caused additional fires. An 8 member smoke jumper team attempting to make a stand 2 miles west of Fireside was overrun and killed by the fire, which then burned the town to the ground. The Great Fire destroyed approximately 100 structures, including 8 trestle bridges on Track 5, killed 11 firefighters and 37 others, burned 800,000 acres, and closed Track 5 to traffic for 2 months. The fire was finally extinguished by the onset of fall rains in late September. A stone cairn memorial to the firefighters killed was constructed at the roadside in the ruins of Fireside on the 10th anniversary of the fire.
1980-07-18 BLACK BLIZZARD OF 1980 (1980 MELANO TEMPESTU)
In 1980 exceptionally dry conditions prevailed over the Northern Desert region. No rain had fallen since November 1979 in a region where typical rainfall amounts are less than 0.5 inches per year. By early summer there had already been 5 small sandstorms reported in the northern Great Waste.
On the morning of 18 July, high winds developed along a steep pressure gradient as a cold front passed over the northern Great Waste. The loose sand of the region was picked up by the wind, with the developing sand storm moving south and east, forming a large dense cloud. In Carson Wells the dust cloud was first seen by 1100; by 1200 the entire sky was obscured. At Fort Wellesly, the temperature rose rapidly as the North wind strengthened; by 1435 it reached a record 120 degrees Fahrenheit. A black-brown dust cloud was sited shortly after, and reached Fort Wellesly before 1500. Onset of the dust cloud was accompanied by strong winds, a rapid temperature drop, a reduction in visibility to under 100 meters. Witnesses reported a rapid drop in ambient lighting. Three individuals caught outside in the storm were asphyxiated by the dust. At Fort Wellesly, the wind speed dropped rapidly at approximately 1600 and conditions cleared.
At its height the sand storm extended from the western boundary of the Republic to as far east as Fort Duffy. Although Astoria escaped the worst of the storm, irrigated farm lands to the immediate north of the city were blanketed by sand. On estimate suggests that as many as 25,000 tons of sand were moved by the storm, with approximately 5,000 tons falling on Carson Wells, Astoria, Fort Wellesly, Fort Duffy, and smaller settlements along the Transnational Highway. The sand cloud was approximately 320 meters high when it struck Carson Wells, but over the uninhabited areas to the north it may have reached as high as 1,500 meters.
Wells and waterholes throughout the area were blanketed with sand, making it difficult to use the already limited water supply. There was a significant short term impact on air quality, causing an 15% increase in reported respiratory illness cases in the Province of the North. In combination with the drought, the impacts on farming and domestic animals were significant, resulting in an overall 43% drop in reported income among farmers and herders living in the Great Waste or along its southern margin.
(historical summary prepared December 2006 by Meagan Prior)
1952-06-04 MOUNT MORIAH ERUPTION (1952 MORIAH BUNO EXANTEMA)
Starting in January a series of small earthquakes along the northern edge of the Northern Massif signaled a return to activity by Mount Moriah, quiescent since 1857. Smoke was observed rising from the volcano in February, and small rockslides, the development of a bulge on the south face, and minor pyroclastic flows on the south and east flanks were observed in April. On 1952-06-04 the volcano erupted explosively, with a major pyrocalstic flow extending 15 miles down the eastern flank and the expulsion of ash in large volumes. Ashfall blanketed much of the Valley of Smokes and extended as far as Astoria. Approximately 40 persons were killed by the pyroclastic flow, another 100 are believed to have died from respiratory ailments caused by the ash, approximately 5,000 cattle were killed, and economic losses were assessed at the time at 10,000,000 Db. Road traffic was suspended for four days on the Transnational Highway north of Divide and south of Astoria, and Cripple Creek was cut off for 6 days until roads and the railroad tracks could be cleared.
1950-08-09 ASTORIA YARDS EXPLOSION (1950 ASTORIA FERU-VIA KORTA EXPLODE)
At 1935 a freight car being shunted in the Astoria rail yard derailed, blocking a portion of the mainline of the Northern Division from Glencoe to Fort Wellesley. A northbound goods train on the mainline collided with the derailed freight car, causing an additional 35 cars to derail on the mainline and on yard tracks as cars jacknifed. Spilled gasoline ignited, eventually triggering a massive explosion involving eight cars of fertilizers, five chemical tank cars, and one car of explosives. Eight train crew members and nine yard workers were killed, along with the entire duty shift of the Astoria Piro Brigada (which had responded to fight the fire), and 12 local residents. Blast damage extended approximately one mile out from the location of the explosion, and 107 persons required medical attention for their injuries.
1949-02-23 BRITISH COLONIAL AIRWAYS CRASH (1949 BRITISH COLONIAL AIRWAYS MAL-ACIDE)
A British Colonial Airways Avro Tudor 6 four engine airliner, registration G-HXFC, crashed on the east slope of The Gap at approximately 1400 Perilo Standard Time while en route to Glencoe with 19 passengers and a crew of 5 aboard. At the time the Northern Massif was shrouded by a snow storm, and other aircraft operating in the vicinity of the Northern Massif reported moderate to severe turbulence. HXFC was reported overdue when the flight failed to land at Glencoe by 1630. Military and civilian aircraft searched along the expected route of the flight which would have taken the aircraft over Fort Wellesley and Astoria to land at Glencoe. However, the wreckage was not located for two years when it was discovered by Perilan Army troops on a field training exercise in The Gap. Wreckage was scattered across a mile long track, with most of the human remains located found in the vicinity of the nose and main fuselage sections. The reason for the deviation from course has not been established.
1948-01-08 INDEPENDENCE DAY EARTHQUAKE (1948 LIBE DI SEISMO)
On the first anniversary of independence, people lined the streets of Glencoe for the Independence Day parade. At 0947 a magnitude 6.5 earthquake occurred at a depth of 7 kilometers, with its epicenter 25 miles northeast of Glencoe on a previously unidentified fault in the Xochimilco Fault system. The earthquake was accompanied by a loud roar, shaking that lasted a full minute, and earthquake lights near the epicenter. Roadways were uplifted by as much as 1 foot, and displaced laterally by as much as 6 feet. An estimated 2,000 were killed, 6,000 injured, and 80,000 people rendered homeless. A contributing factor to the casualty count was debris from the failure of decorative parapets and other architectural elements of buildings falling on the crowds along the parade route.
Access throughout the city for emergency vehicles was impeded by the debris from the collapsed buildings and damage to the roadways. Water, sewer, and electrical utilities were disrupted by the earthquake. As fires broke out throughout the city, the fire service was unable to control many of the fires due to damage to water mains. Additionally, telephone system outages meant residents were not able to report fires or request medical assistance. Consequently, in some neighborhoods fires that started in a single residences ultimately engulfed the whole block. On the outskirts of the city, a fire in a textile factory quickly spread out of control and destroyed several blocks of substandard housing for factory workers.
The National Civil Defense Office began coordinating response efforts immediately after the earthquake using available telephone and telegraph circuits and Amateur Radio Disaster Corps radio stations. Further complicating the attempts to coordinate the immediate response was the lack of interoperability among existing communication systems - the Constabulary, Fire Service, and military units lacked compatible radio systems.
Copeland National Medical Center and the Fort Frank Military Hospital each set up triage stations in their parking lots to control and sort incoming patients. Bodies of those killed were collected at several locations where large enough public buildings were available to allow family members to identify the dead. When the last remains had been claimed, approximately 130 sets of remains were unidentified - these were buried in a mass grave at Fort Frank.
Thousands of newly homeless victims made shelters in the streets, in parks, and in the debris of their collapsed homes. It took one year to eventually house all of those rendered homeless. In the meantime, excess deaths were identified among the homeless as many were destitute and without proper shelter, sanitation, and food. Those without immediate funds to rebuild were forced to live in ramshackle shelters on the edges of the city or in cramped quarters with the numerous others whose homes had been claimed by the earthquake.
Aftershocks of magnitude 5.0 or greater were felt in the week following the initial earthquake, adding to the general unease throughout the city. Most residents slept outside for several days. Overnight and on 9 January there was scattered looting, but the Constabulary, garrison troops from Fort Frank, and the City Troop (territorial army) were able to maintain order.
Damages were estimated at 150,000,000 then year Doubloons in basic infrastructure and municipal buildings and services with an additional 90,000,000 Doubloons in privately owned property damage. Thousands of public, commercial, and residential structures were damaged - estimates approached 27,000 structures destroyed or damaged. One of Glencoe's most historic buildings, the City Hall, the architectural centerpiece of the downtown, was severely damaged and later would have to be torn down and completely rebuilt.
Transportation systems suffered extensive damage in the quake, with highway buckling and cracking and bridge displacement common in the north central Piedmont region. The National Railway experienced significant damage to both its east-west and north-south lines in the Glencoe area. Approximately 100 miles of mainline, yard, and siding track was displaced by the quake and was eventually relaid.
The initial psychological effect of the earthquake was a sense of despondency and shock. However, influential civic and commercial leaders immediately pressed for rapid rebuilding. Businessmen and politicians were quick to downplay the enormity of the disaster so not to disrupt business with their trading partners. Newspaper articles downplayed the widespread impact on blue collar workers and the poor and urged all who were able to get out and work. As a result there was a surge in demand for labor in construction trades, and skilled workers from unaffected areas throughout Perilo moved to the city to fill these jobs.
Due to the impacts of World War II on national resources in the developed world international assistance was limited. Both the United Kingdom and the United States of America deployed military resources (including warships, aircraft, and engineering resources) to assist in rescue and recovery, and the United States provided international aid over the next two years that was crucial in reconstruction.
(historical summary prepared December 2006 by Meagan Prior)
1936-9-16 NORTHERN STAR MISSING (1936 NORTHERN STAR MINUS)
The Trans-Perilo Airways twin-engined biplane Curtis Condor BT32 named Northern Star, registration G-ADC, disappeared on 16 September on a flight from Portsmouth to Port Stanley with 13 passengers and crew aboard. The Northern Star departed Portsmouth at 1805 PST, was heard overhead Alamance at 1758 PST, and may have been sighted by the crew of a lake freighter between Alamance and Lakeside at approximately 1930 PST. No further report of the aircraft was received, and searches by vessels on Lake Stanley and Trans-Perilo Airways and Perilan Flying Corps aircraft found no sign of the passenger aircraft.
1921-01-12 THE HARDSCRABBLE AVALANCHE (1921 HARDSCRABBLE AVALANCA)
At 0235 PST on the morning of 12 January, a large avalanche swept down the south face of Radio Peak on the southern edge of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, running out through the village of Hardscrabble. The avalanche destroyed or damaged 30 structures and killed 22 residents of the village. In a freak occurrence, the Bird House, a somewhat disreputable bar, and its late night patrons, was carried across Route 14 with only minor damage, causing one of the patrons, Charles McGinty, to foreswear alcohol and become a temperance crusader. Route 14 was blocked for one week by snow, ice, and debris.
1911-11-11 THE LAKE STANLEY HURRICANE (1911 STANLEY LAKU CIKLONI)
On 1911-11-11 the convergence of two low pressure systems north of the Ossippee Ridge created an extremely intense low that moved rapidly northeast over Lake Stanley. Temperatures dropped to near freezing by noon, and winds over the 24 hour period peaked at 75 knots with gusts as high as 92 knots. Overnight on 11-12 November one vessel on the Lake reported waves in excess of 30 feet in height. Port facilities suffered heavy damage in all of the Lake port's; Port Stanley's docks were not restored to full operations for 9 months after the storm.
Shipping losses were heavy. The number of small boats, fishing boats, and pirogues lost is unknown, but the loss of people aboard small vessels was estimated as 1000 or more. Among the larger lake freighters, 4 disappeared without a trace, 6 sank at identified locations, and 7 grounded or ran ashore. The total loss of life reported by the Lake Shipowners Association was 243 mariners.
1890-3 THE COASTAL SWEATING SICKNESS (1890 SUDO PATO)
In March 1980 an outbreak of Sweating Sickness, a very rapid onset disease marked by headache, muscle pain, vomiting, delirium, and paralysis, followed by death within 24 hours, struck the coastal communities of Portsmouth, Ashby, and Georgetown, resulting in at least 2000 deaths. The smaller communities of Fort Erika, Chambersburg, and Castle Rae lost as much as 50 percent of their populations.
1757-10 ERUPTION SERIES (1757 PLU EXANTEMA)
Reports by settlers and the intendant of the Astoria tenancy record major explosive eruptions of Mount Moriah, Mount Lorenza and the Samadzai Volcano extending over a two week period. The first eruption, apparently of Mount Moriah, was heard loudly in Astoria, leading the commander of the military garrison, Colonel Cadwallader Jones, to order the defenses of the town manned - as he noted in his journal, he first believed the volcanic explosions were cannon fire. Contemporary documents record at least 12 major explosions during this period. Geological exploration in the 1990s confirmed that this series of eruptions generated nuee ardentes than ran out to 30 miles from the crater of Mount Moriah.
1623-06 CYCLONE (1623 CIKLONI)
A strong tropical cyclone in 1623-06 drove ashore and wrecked a squadron of 9 Spanish warships in the shallows and sandbars off the east side of Cape San Blas. The loss of life was reported in Spanish dispatches as 9 noblemen of rank, 80 officers, and 950 sailors and soldiers.