Earthquake struck in Shamakhi District, Azerbaijan on February 13, 1902
One of Azerbaijan's most destructive earthquakes, killing up to 2,000 people and destroying thousands of buildings in the Baku Governorate.
Key Facts
- Moment Magnitude
- 7.4 Mw
- Max Mercalli Intensity
- IX (Violent)
- Death Toll
- Up to 2,000 people
- Buildings Damaged/Destroyed
- ~7,439 buildings
- Date
- 13 February 1902
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Shamakhi (Shemakha) sits in a seismically active zone of the South Caucasus and had already suffered major earthquakes in 1806, 1859, and 1872, indicating persistent tectonic stress in the region beneath the Baku Governorate of the Russian Empire.
On 13 February 1902, an earthquake of moment magnitude 7.4 struck the Shemakha uezd, reaching a maximum Modified Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). The shaking caused catastrophic damage across the city of Shamakhi and surrounding villages, killing up to 2,000 people and injuring thousands more.
Approximately 7,439 buildings were damaged or destroyed, devastating the urban and rural fabric of the region. The event remains one of the most destructive earthquakes in Azerbaijani history, compounding the losses from earlier seismic events that had already repeatedly struck the same area.