Photo 1082/6

Black soft-covered mock pig-skin photograph album measuring 385x235mm, with red leather title-piece on front cover. The fifty photographs are mostly mounted two to a page with letterpress captions pasted beneath. The prints illustrate damage to railway lines, bridges and buildings.The album also contains a single sheet letterpress description of the earthquake written by Railway's Agent J. Williamson; a map on the last page shows the earthquake's epicentre and extent and marks damage to railway lines, bridges, buildings and other structures. Williamson's account reads as follows:

'The Earthquake which occured at about 14-15 hours on the afternoon of the 15th January 1934 in Behar was probably the most severe and extensive of which there is record in India. It caused wide-spread damage and heavy loss of life, chiefly in North Behar. The first devastating shock lasted from 3 to 4 minutes, subsequent minor shocks although alarming did no great damage.

The epicentre can be closely placed in the Nepal Terai to the north of Sitamarhi, probably near the foot of the first range of the Nepal Hills, where the southern edge of the younger Himalayan and older Siwalik formations abut to form a weak line or fault in the earth's crust. The disturbance appears to have been caused by some great subterranean movement, either upheaval or settlement, not by volcanic activity.

The greater damage is traceable along certain radial lines, or faults, such as southwards down the valleys of the Bagmati and Bur-Gundak rivers through Sitamarhi, Darbhanga towards Monghyr and Jamalpur, and northwards through the Katmandu valley which lies on the upper reaches of the Bagmati river. Others radiated in an easterly direction through Madhubani, Supaul to Purneah, and to the south-west through Sonepore and Chupra, whilst an easterly line affected Darjeeling.

The most severe and shattering damage occured along definite lines; it was as if the surface of the land had been heaved in long waves which at their crest, or what may be termed lines of intense pressure, broke in spray as would an ocean billow.

Along these lines of pressure which vary in width from about a hundred yards to a quarter of a mile, the land is broken up and torn by deep longitudinal crevasses up to five or six feet in width with smaller cross fissuring.

In the vicinity of rivers and jheels the intense vibration shook the adjacent land which slid inwards in long fissured terraces carrying with it buildings, culverts and deeply founded bridges. Silt-laden water was expelled from innumerable fissures and geyser-like blow-holes and over spread the country so that vast areas are now covered with varying depths of sand and silt. Even on top of high embankments, silt was expelled through fissures.

Of the 2,100 miles comprising the Bengal and North Western and Tirhut Railways, it may be said that on the 900 miles traversing North Behar and the eastern United Provinces, hardly a mile of track was undisturbed; embankments settled and even disappeared entirely, the rails remaining suspended and were elsewhere raised or shifted many feet laterally. Not a bridge remained undamaged, from minor cracks in arches, wing walls and abutments, displaced piers and girders, to complete destruction. Training works and guide-banks of large bridges were cracked and shaken. Few buildings remained unscathed; some were entirely shattered and have to be rebuilt, others partially so, and few are without cracks and damage of some nature. Deeply founded piers and wells of large bridges were moved many feet out of alignment. Bridges with open founds assumed curious positions; many were raised bodily and others sank, in some cases suffering little damage. A number of lengthy bridges moved bodily to one side and assumed the shape of an arc; others are veritable switch-backs partly sunk and partly raised. Many large girders were completely shaken off their piers and lie a mass of steel work in the river bed; hardly a single girder was undisturbed. The number of culverts and bridges large and small severely damaged or destroyed, is 361.

At all watering stations in Tirhut, under ground piping was rendered useless and had to be dug up and repaired. Several tank houses and wells were completely destroyed.

Throughout the affected area even as far westwards as Gorakhpur, station buildings, bungalows and staff-quarters suffered, and in Behar many were demolished and few are free from minor carcks and displaced roof tiles.

Everywhere tales are told by the staff of miraculous escapes of themselves and families staying in Railway quarters. Only three employees were killed, a carpenter and a cooly in the collapse of the Engineering Workshop at Samastipur and one of the loco staff. A few have been seriously injured. Many have, however, lost families and relatives at their own homes.

It is impossible for anyone who has not visited Behar to realise the devastation. The photographs in this album will convey some impression of the great damage suffered by the Railway.'

Process = Gelatin silver prints.

Photographers = Unknown photographer., ;