2S4 THE PERUVIAN TIDAL WAVE. 



town completely obliterated. A mine about four miles from Tocopila sank 

 in, killing about two hundred workmen. A wave thirty-five feet high 

 swept along the principal business street of Cobija, an important town on 

 the Bolivian coast, and left it as level as a desert. Eleven large vessels were 

 totally lost, with many persons on board, and much other shipping seriously 

 damaged.^ The property lost is estimated at twenty millions of dollars, and 

 the loss of life on shore is supposed to be not less than six hundred." 



The South Pacific Times, of Callao, Peru, says, to call the movement of 

 the sea, which resulted in such a terrible loss of life, a tidal wave, is a mis- 

 nomer, as a wave implies an undulatory motion, while the action of the sea 

 in this instance was a series of distinct rotary upheavals, breaking into many 

 cyclonic currents of great speed and power, and continuing for many hours. 

 Later accounts from Valparaiso indicate that that port did not suifer much 

 from the cataclj^sm, but the other Chilian ports did not escape damage, al- 

 though not serious in comparison with that suffered in other places. 

 Peru and Bolivia are the two countries that suffered most, the latter probably 

 more than the former. 



The movement of the sea is described as being very similar in all the 

 ports along the coast from Callao to Ooquimbo, Chili, although varying 

 greatly in intensity. Pabellon dePica is regarded as the center of the dis- 

 turbance. At Callao the sea showed unusual agitation as early as 11 o'clock 

 on the night of the 9th of May, and shortly after the bay was filled with 

 gyratory currents, causing the ships at anchor to revolve about their chains 

 as centers. The actions of the currents were strong enough to break away 

 the stern moorings of large steamers. The sea showed several distinct up- 

 heavals, the highest one occurring about 4 a. m. on the 10th of May, the stone 

 docks at that time being submerged. There were no disastrous results to 

 the shipping in Callao harbor, but at the guano deposits considerable dam- 

 age was done, and at one time the whole fleet was in danger of being cast 

 ashore. The Governor of the guano deposit at Pabellon de Pica reported 

 to the Peruvian Government that a powerful earthquake, extending all along 

 the coast, commencing about 8:15 p. m. on the 9th of May, and lasting five 

 or six minutes, caused the instantaneous outbreak of fire throughout the 

 town, a fire which w^as in turn extinguished by the sea, which invaded the 

 settlement six times, and shifting the position of the Government buildings 

 destroyed molls, boats, hydraulic machines and all the works connected 

 with the loading of guano, and more or less damaged all the vessels at the 

 deposit b}^ collision or otherwise, sinking six. The loss of life at Pabellon was 

 not fully ascertained, but 33 laborers are known to have been buried by a land- 

 slide. The Governor also states that there are 1,000 people without food 

 and in danger of stavation. 



At the nitrate deposits the works were thrown down by the earthquake, 

 and those of ISTueva Carolina, San Pedro, Matellana and La Barrencaber 

 were ruined, involving a loss of 1,400,000 soles. Those at San Juan and 

 Compania Taropoca were badl}^ damaged. The entire loss at the nitrate 



