On May 7, 1984, the violent earthquake caused extensive damage in several towns in the province of Isernia.
ISERNIA. Seventy municipalities affected, 9 of which seriously, 83 injured, three deaths (indirect) and around 6 thousand displaced. They are the numbers of violent earthquake which at 7.48 pm on 7 May 1984 – exactly 40 years ago – occurred in a vast area between the regions of Lazio, Abruzzo and Molise between the upper Sangro valley and the Val di Comino.
The shock, with a moment magnitude of 5.9 and an intensity equal to the VIII degree of the Mercalli scale, had the area of San Donato Val di Comino as its epicenter. Damage also occurred in Isernia and its province, where the centers were most affected they were Forlì del Sannio, Acquaviva d’Isernia, Colli a Volturno and Pizzone.
In the most damaged locations (Alfedena, Barrea, Civitella Alfedena, Opi, Pescasseroli, Scanno, Villetta Barrea, San Donato in Val di Comino, Forlì del Sannio) on average 50% of the homes (mostly old buildings or farmhouses) were damaged and 35% declared unusable.
Less serious damage affected around 120 other locations in Abruzzo, southern Lazio and Campania. The shock was felt significantly in Rome, and in general throughout central-southern Italy.
A violent retort occurred the following May 11th, at 12.42pm. The earthquake had its epicenter in the southern area of Pnalm, a short distance from the epicenter four days earlier, recording a moment magnitude of 5.5 and an intensity equal to the VII degree of the Mercalli Scale. Response which caused the worsening of the injuries recorded in the previous earthquake. Numerous replications occurred then until May 19th.
In Isernia, as in the other affected towns in the province, the memory of those months remains imprinted. Many had to leave their homes. In the central capital, the area most affected was the historic centre.
SEE THE IMAGES OF THE PERIOD TAKEN FROM THE CRISTICINI PHOTOGRAPHIC ARCHIVE AND FROM GIUSEPPE D’ACCHIOLI’S PERSONAL COLLECTION
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