Timeline of natural disasters in the Azores

Here were the natural disasters that happened in the Azores Islands.

1401-1500

*Around 1432 — first recorded famine in the Azores.
*1439? - 1444? — Volcanic eruption on Sete Cidades, Miguel - The eruption was not recorded especially the precise date for the occurrence was not even recorded.
*1460? — Volcanic eruption in Sete Cidades, São Miguel - No information were recorded that time not even the precise location and the effect of the eruption.

1501-1600

*1522 — Submersion of Vila Franca do Campo (on ground), São Miguel, on the night of 21 and October 22, 1522, a violent earthquake brought the greatest mudslide in the hills around Vila Franca do Campo causing damages to the largest part of the town, the old island capital. Large mudslides were also occurred in Maia, an area surrounding Ponta Garça. The phenomena of Vila Franca brought and inspired many writings including one that has oral roots entitled Novel of Vila Franca ("Romance de Vila Franca") of the novel written by Teófilo Braga.
*1523-1530 — An epidemic plague ravished the island of São Miguel, in the beginning of 1523 to 1530 , an epidemic plague affected people and the island became isolated for a few years. The plague also reached Faial Island.
*1538 — Volcanic eruption in the cay of Ferraria, São Miguel - In that year, the underwater eruption in the proximity of the coast of Ponta da Ferraria for nearly 25 days. The eruption resulted in the appearance of the small island of "one league in circumference" and shortly disappeared. The eruption caused no damages on land.
*1547 — Earthquake in the northeastern part of Terceira Island, it happened on May 17 of the same year caused damages in Raminho (Folhadais), Altares and Biscoitos.
*1562 - 1564 — Volcanic eruption on Prainha do Norte, Pico Island - On September 21, 1562, tremors shook the land that would lasted for a "third of an hour" followed by a bang. An interesting description about the eruption still exists for the contemporaneous of town of Velas, São Jorge which observed the phenomenon.
*1563 — Volcanic eruption on Lagoa do Fogo, São Miguel - the eruption began on June 29 and five violent earthquakes shook the area which brought the enormous destruction on the island. The violent eruption ended on July 3. The type of activity was a Plinian.
*1563 — A volcanic eruption in Pico do Sapateiro, São Miguel almost in simultaneous of the eruption on Lagoa do Fogo and caused a strombolian eruption in Pico do Sapateiro, parish of Ribeira Seca. The peak was a dome located near the graben of Ribeira Grande where then a lagoon used to exist. The volcano spewed large amounts of lava composing basaltic, very fluid. The historian written in full detail about the eruption enclosed on its workmanship "Fénix Angrense" or the Angrense Phoenix.
*1564 — Volcanic eruption on Lagoa do Fogo, São Miguel - The Eruption began on February 13 for a few days, causing no damages. Probably it was a manifestation.
*1571 — Seismic crisis caused great damages in Angra. A part of the month of June, the earthquake was centered SE of Terceira probably at Banco D. João de Castro. It shook Terceira and was felt in São Miguel, it was noticed that a ship was sailing around the area.
*1580 — Eruption of the volcano of Queimada, São Jorge - On the night of April 28, the land trembled thirty times and fifty in the next day. On May 1, the tremors shook and in that day created a volcanic explosion on the top of the volcano. Another explosion happened in front of the upper part of Ribeira do Nabo, 2 km east of the volcano. The lava flows began near Ribeira do Almeida. The eruption lasted four months with large lava flows and volcanic ashes spread into Terceira.
*1588 — Large floods in São Miguel and Porto de Pipas, Tercrita on February 26. The waters were flowed through the valley approaching Porto de Pipas causing destruction to ships and boats.
*1588 — Large floods in Velas, São Jorge - on November 8, began near Velas with a torrent that "took many people into the sea and flooded many homes", gave origin to a popular poem.
*1591 — Earthquake felt in São Miguel and on Terceira - In consequence, the earthquake ruined many buildings especially in Vila Franca do Campo and Água de Pau, the population lost their best homes. The king spend 150,000 real for the reconstruction. The earthquake was felt as far as Terceira, where the land shook four times and seemed to want to "subvert itself"
*1593 — The worst agricultural year caused a famine in the islands of Terceira and São Jorge in 1593 which was associated with the war of 1580-1593
*1599 - 1600 — Bubonic plague caused 7,000 deaths in Terceira, the year 1599 was known as the "bad year" since the epidemic crisis. It affected about much of the population and for two years the worst disaster in Terceira's history and continued for nearly two decades.

1601 - 1700

*1606 - Flooding in Velas, São Jorge, in February caused large damages to the town of Velas, many roads were "the way that no one could walk a foot".
*1608 — Large flooding in Angra, Terceira - On February 11 at about 9 at night, and created a huge intense mudslide in Angra, situated during the area all night. At dawn, the mudslide intensed causing to excave a cave named Santa Luzia. The waters flooded Rua Miragaia as well as Rus do Marquês and Rua do Palácio and also flooded Rua Direita. The flood knocked down walls at its port (the famous "Porta do Mar"), the flood damaged properties and ruined various homes and buildings.
*1613 — Year of the sterility of the grass. It killed two cows. That year was a combination of drought and gale force winds in the winter and spring leaving in one dramatic situation. It killed many animals. It would have been the year of "La Niña"?
*1614 — The first "Caída da Praia" ("Falling of Praia") - earthquakes on April 9 in Fontinhas and May 24 in Praia, Terceira - On April 9, an earthquake destroyed almost all of the parish of Fontinhas and created large damages to other parishes. On May 24, an earthquake with a huge magnitude ruined almost all of the parishes of Agualva, Vila Nova, Lajes and Santa Cruz de Praia caused injuries. Francisco Ferreira Drummond described in the "Annals of Terceira" "Fallen" in the reconstruction with a great detail.
*1630 — A Plinian-type Eruption of Furnas, São Miguel and occurred on Septemnber 3. It was known as the "Year of the Ashtray", 191 people were killed in the eruption. The eruption was accompanied with a vulcanic explosions in sea and the sone located near Fogo and around Ribeira Quente. It also created large mudslides in lants of the south coast of the island of São Miguel.
*1630 — Mudslide in Castelo, São Miguel, in 1630 occurred a gigantic mudslide happened in where today lies the westernmost point of the "cape" located near Ribeira Quente, São Miguel. The mudslide torn a part of Castelo in the area now known as Ponta da Albufeira. The mudslide was associated with an eruption on Furnas in the same year.
*1637 — A hurricane reached Terceira - On August 3, a major storm pounded the island and caused great damages
*1638 — underwater eruption near Candelária, São Miguel island, the eruption was a Surtseyan, it began on July 3 located about 2 km off the Ponta da Candelária. For 29 days produced a ring-formed island. During the eruption, the sulfur affected about 8 leagues in distance and killed many fishes which created "To load eight vessels to India".
*1641 — A great wave (probably from seaquake) in Velas, São Jorge, on December 21, it created a wave near Monte dos Fachos causing great destruction to the town.
*1647 — Seismic crisis in Terceira and caused the worst agricultural year in all of the islands. It lasted from the end of December up until the beginning of July causing violent tremors causing panic in Angra.
*1649 — A storm wrecked four boats in Angra, earthquake in Terceira, a storm caused strong southeast winds to overturn four boats in Angra. A small earthquake shook Terceira. It was the year that celebrated good wine productions.
*1652 — Eruption on Pico do Fogo, São Miguel, after one week of violent eruption, which caused great phenomena in Lagoa and parts of Ponta Delgada, On October 19 caused a Strombolian eruption. A basaltic lava destroyed the areas near Calhetas as well as parts of Portões Vermelhos. The eruption lasted for 15 days and caused phenomena.
*1656 — An earthquake rumbled the island of São Miguel on October 18, 1656. The same day at two o'clock caused various aftershocks and on the next day, at seven in the afternoon caused a strong aftershock and damaged houses.
*1656 — Epidemic of smallpox in Terceira - The epidemic affected almost all children under the age of three and reached the population as high as the age of fifteen.
*1668 — A storm reached and devastated Calheta on São Jorge - On November 23, a violent storm caused an "alteration of the sea that flooded the village destroying and knocking down houses", it also obstructed the port.
*1672 — A volcanic eruption occurred on the night of April 13 in Faial which was followed by five seismic waves with caused a seismic crisis in the whole island. Victims of the volcano emigrated to Maranhão, Brazil.
*1678 — Lack of cereals caused disputes in the municipalities in the islands of São Jorge and Pico. A worst agricultural year which made cereals scarce for the islands of São Jorge and Pico and made the necessity to prohibit cereal exports
*1682 — Underwater eruption occurred in front of Ferraria, São Miguel, the eruption was 4 leagues from Ponta da Ferraria.
*1690 — A huge storm along with an earthquake caused panic on the island of Terceira.
*1698 — Seismic crisis in Terceira in October created panic to the population.

1701 - 1800

*1713 — Floods in the town of Velas on São Jorge. On December 10, the same year, many intense mudslides in the area between Urzelina and Rosais caused large floods destroyed 27 houses in the town of Velas. The Ribeira da Almeida overflowed and by its beach which allowed the passage by foot between the town and Queimage
*1713 — Volcanig eruption and gases at Pico das Camarinhas on São Miguel Island. In various weeks continued and on late-December, created fumes and gases throughout the area. The eruption created volcanic explosions. The seismic crisis destroyed many houses in Ginetes, Mosteiros and Candelária.
*1717 - 1718 — Epidemic in Faial which lasted from November 1717 to February 1718 which caused a bubonic plague. On November, the death toll were mainly in Cedros, the same in Castelo Branco and Flamengos.
*1718 — Eruption in Santa Luzia do Pico which started on February 1 and ended on August 15 and repeated on September, the actitivate ended at the beginning of November. The localization was in the eruptive centre.
*1720 — Eruption in Soldão, Lajes do Pico on July 10
*1720 — Eruption in Banco D. João de Castro
*1730 — Earthquake caused destruction to parish of Luz in Graciosa, on June 13, a violent earthquake destroyed the whole parish of Luz in Graciosa.
*1744 — A tropical cyclone struck the island of Picl, ruining the parishes of Praina do Galeão, Praia do Norte and São Roque and also in Água de Pau
*1755 — A tidal wave (tsunami) reached the Azores - "The Tidal Wave of Lisbon" of November 1, 1755 caused a large tidal wave and ruined a large number of buildings in number of parishes. Almost all of its ports in the Azores suffered great destruction and lost many boats. The wave reached about 10 palms (about 150 m) and up to 80 palms (about 120 m)
*1759-1760 — Earthquake in Faial, which began on December 24, 1759 which was the greatest earthquake on the island, followed with many tremors. Another occurred in January 4.
*1761 — Eruption on Pico Gordo, Terceira which started on November 1760 and created violent tremors which continued until April 14. Another eruption happened on April 21, the same year.
*1761 — A tropical hurricane affected the central group of the Azores Islands on September 29
*1779 — A tropical storm ruined again the central group of the islands on the nights of October 30 and the 31.
*1779 — Epidemic in Flores
*1787 - Seismic crisis in Graciosa, in March, the crisis rumbled the island and caused considerable damages
*1800 — Earthquake in the northeastern portion of Terceira rumbled in the afternoon hours of June 24, the earthquake ruined good parts of the buildings of the parishes or villages of northeastern Terceira.

1801 - 1900

*1801 - Earthquake in São Sebastião, the sequence of the earthquake in the previous year, new earthquake with larger intensity reached the same parishes. Damages were mainly in São Sebastião, a beach near hdhhduenhhauh;aughuwbiubhCabo da Praia.
*1808 — Eruption in Urzelina, São Jorge
*1811 - A volcanic eruption occurred at the shore of Ferraria, São Miguel creating a short-existed Sabrina Island named after the British frigate "HMS Sabrina". It caused destruction to many homes. The islet disappeared in the following years.
*1817 — Seismic crisis in the island of Graciosa causing great damages to most buildings and properties.
*1841 — A second "Caída da Praia" ("Falling of Praia") earthquakes on June 15 in Praia da Vitória and Fontinhas on Terceira - Houses were destroyed in the parishes of Santa Cruz da Praia, Fontinhas, Lajes, São Brás, Vila Nova, Agualva, Cabo da Praia, Porto Martins and São Sebastião
*1848 — An earthquake caused nine deaths in southwestern São Miguel island, the strength caused great damages to Várzea, Feteiras, Candelária and Ginetes
*1852 — An earthquake rumble the island of São Miguel causing damages to the area.
*1857 — Hunger reached São Jorge, a tropical cyclone reached the Central Group on August 24, 1857 and caused a destruction of about two thousand farmlands and caused famine. The famine ended after 1859
*1867 — Underwater eruption in the cay of Serreta, Terceira on the night of June 1 and June 7 after many weeks of intense aftershocks

1901 - 2000

*1907 — An underwater eruption at the Mónaco Fracture. On the 1st of April founded a small eruption at a radius of 400 m at the depths of Banco Mónaco SSW of S. Miguel. It spewed out ashes from the submerged cape São Miguel - Faial
*1911 — Underwater eruption in the Mónaco Fracture, in March, it caused a minor eruption located about 200 to 300 m in depth SSW in 1907, the eruption lasted several hours.
*1926 — A major earthquake rumbled the city of Horta, in early-April, the island saw series of intensive earthquakes. On April 5, damages were reported in Flamengos, Ribeirinha and Conceição. On August 31 at 8:42 (Oscar Time) causing 8 deaths ruining the cities of Horta again and parishes of Conceição, Praia do Almoxarife (ruining 220 homes), Flamengos, Feteira and Castelo Branco and most of Lomba do Pilar e o Salão. The total and partial damages to the earthquake were 4,138 homes and buildings
*1957 - 1958 — Eruption at Capelinhos, Faial between September 16 and 27, 1957 ruined buildings and extended the land by an underwater eruption 1 km from Ponta dos Capelinhos. Many people emigrated to North America.
*1963 — An earthquake and an underwater eruption affected Santa Luzia in Pico from December 12 to 15. It made seismographs from Faial registered a volcanic tremor at Cachorro, Santa Luzia on the north coast of the island of Pico. The tremor lasted from December 13 to 14. On December 15, with great weather and a good visibility, residents of Faial and Pico saw "balls of clouds of vapor" leaving from the front of Cachorro. None of these materials were collected and the phenomenon was not did not shook heavily and did not caused any damages.
*1964 — An earthquake shaked São Jorge created large catastrophe in Rosais and Velas. It damaging 900 homes and 400 buildings. It caused enormous panic to the island, leading to evacuation in large numbers of Jorgenses into Terceira and other islands. The crisis was created by an underwater eruption deep in the Rosais key.
*1973 — Earthquake shook the islands of Pico and Faial, in the portion of October 11, residents felt numerous aftershocks on Pico, Faial and São Jorge with particular prominence over the parish of São Mateus and the locality of Terra do Pão, and Pico island. On November 23 at 12:36 p.m. OST (2:36 p.m. GMT), measured a violent earthquake (at 7/8 on the Wood-Neumann scale) with the epicenter near Santo Antonio on Pico. The earthquake caused major damages, with many houses partially damaged, fallen walls and displaced streets and roads, the parishes of Bandeiras Santa Luzia, Santo Antóónio and São Roque in the north coast of Pico and São Mateus in the south coast and damaged the parishes of Conceição, Matriz and Flamengos in the island of Faial
*1980 - The 1980 Azores earthquake on January 1 devastated Terceira São Jorge and Graciosa islands happened at 4:42 p.m. OST (6:42 p.m. GMT) measuring 7 on the Richter Scale. The epicenter was located nearly 35 km SSW of Angra do Heroísmo. It caused damages to buildings in the city of Angra do Heroísmo. town of São Sebastião and the parishes of W and NW Terceira and including Topo and Santo Antão, in São Jorge devastated Carapacho and Luz in Graciosa. The earthquake was one of the greatest recorded earthquakes in the Azores Islands. 71 persons risked their lives, 400 were injured, nearly 15,500 homes were destroyed and 15,000 (about 5% of the Azores) were homeless.
*1981 — An underwater eruption in Fractura Mónaco, in the beginning of July, a small underwater eruption about 300 m in depth was located in Banco Mónaco (SSW of São Miguel), it spewed gases and basaltic materials.
*1997 — An underwater eruption near Banco D. João de Castro -In the spring of 1997, the intense microseismic activity rumbled throughout that area and caused numerous earthquakes and aftershocks (I to III on the Mercali scale felt in Terceira and São Miguel islands lifted and created an underwater eruption.
*1997 — Mudslide in Ribeira Quente, São Miguel, on October 31, 1997 after one week of intense slides, it created for early two hours of heavy precipitation on October 31 and created a mudslide over the hillsides of Outeiro das Freiras and left 36 families totaling 114 persons homeless.
*1998 — The 1998 Azores earthquake on July 9 shook Faial, Pico and São Jorge at 5:19 a.m. ODT (6:19 a.m. GMT) measured 5.6 on the Richter scale with and epicenter NNE of the island of Faial caused damages to the parishes of Riberinha, Pedro Miguel, Salão and Cedros and stronger damages in Castelo Branco (mainly Lombega), Flamengos and Praia do Almoxarife on Faial, it also caused damages in parts of Pico Island and the far western part of the São Jorge Island. 8 persons lost their lives in the earthquake, 1,700 persons were homelesses.
*1999 — 2000 - An underwater eruption shook Serreta on Terceira registering aftershocks in the area on November 25, 1998 Fishermen founded another eruption at the end of December.

2002 - Present

*Spring 2005 - Heavy rainfall ravished the Azores Islands causing mudslides, floods and torrential downpours to most of the islands. Homes were flooded, people were stranded in their houses and roads were closed, several buildings, properties and roads were ruined by this weather phenomenon.

ee also

*History of Azores