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1954 72 years ago Selected Events September 9 3 sources

A magnitude-6.7 earthquake struck near Chlef, killing over 1,200 people and forcing the Algerian government to implement comprehensive reforms in building codes.

On September 9, in the year 1954, A magnitude-6.7 earthquake struck near Chlef, killing over 1,200 people and forcing the Algerian government to implement comprehensive reforms in building codes. This event is recorded as a Selected Events event in the history of September 9, one of 457 recorded events on this date across all of history.

The 1954 Chlef earthquake struck El Asnam Province in French Algeria on 9 September at 02:04:43 local time. The shock measured 6.7 on the moment magnitude scale and had a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme). It destroyed Chlef, then named Orléansville, leaving over 1,243 people dead and 5,000 injured. Damage was estimated at $6 million. It was followed by multiple aftershocks. Algeria faces annual earthquakes and has undergone several changes to its earthquake building codes since its first earthquake engineering regulations from 1717.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on September 9, 1954 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Selected Events event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 3 Wikipedia articles.
  • The event is associated with a specific geographical location (see map below).
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 26 July 2026.

On This Date in History 457

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Historical Events 2015 Sep 9 Elizabeth II becomes the longest reigning monarch of the United Kingdom.
Notable Deaths 2015 Sep 9 Annemarie Bostroem, German poet, playwright, and songwriter (born 1922)
Notable Deaths 2015 Sep 9 Einar H. Ingman Jr., American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (born 1929)
Notable Deaths 2015 Sep 9 K. Kunaratnam, Sri Lankan physicist and academic (born 1934)
Selected Events 2015 Sep 9 Elizabeth II (pictured) became the longest-reigning monarch of the United Kingdom, surpassing Queen Victoria.
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Notable Deaths 2014 Sep 9 Montserrat Abelló i Soler, Spanish poet and translator (born 1918)
Notable Deaths 2014 Sep 9 Firoza Begum, Bangladeshi singer (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2014 Sep 9 Graham Joyce, English author and educator (born 1954)
Notable Deaths 2013 Sep 9 Sunila Abeysekera, Sri Lankan scholar and activist (born 1952)
Notable Deaths 2013 Sep 9 Alberto Bevilacqua, Italian director and screenwriter (born 1934)
Notable Deaths 2013 Sep 9 Saul Landau, American journalist, director, and author (born 1936)
Historical Events 2012 Sep 9 The Indian space agency puts into orbit its heaviest foreign satellite yet, in a streak of 21 consecutive successful…
Historical Events 2012 Sep 9 A wave of attacks kills more than 100 people and injure 350 others across Iraq.
Notable Deaths 2012 Sep 9 Verghese Kurien, Indian engineer and businessman, founded Amul (born 1921)
Notable Deaths 2012 Sep 9 John McCarthy, Australian footballer (born 1989)
Notable Deaths 2012 Sep 9 Mike Scarry, American football player and coach (born 1920)
Notable Deaths 2012 Sep 9 Ron Tindall, English footballer and manager (born 1935)
Selected Events 2010 Sep 9 A natural-gas pipeline in San Bruno, California, exploded and "shot a fireball more than 1,000 feet (300 m) in the…
Historical Events 2009 Sep 9 The Dubai Metro, the first urban train network in the Arabian Peninsula, is ceremonially inaugurated.
Historical Events 2006 Sep 9 Space Shuttle Program: Space Shuttle Atlantis is launched on STS-115 to resume assembling the International Space…
Notable Deaths 2006 Sep 9 Gérard Brach, French director and screenwriter (born 1927)
Notable Deaths 2006 Sep 9 Richard Burmer, American composer and engineer (born 1955)
Notable Deaths 2006 Sep 9 Matt Gadsby, English footballer (born 1979)
Notable Deaths 2006 Sep 9 William Bernard Ziff Jr., American businessman, founded Ziff Davis (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2004 Sep 9 Ernie Ball, American guitarist and businessman (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2004 Sep 9 Caitlin Clarke, American actress (born 1952)
Notable Births 2003 Sep 9 Luke Hughes, American ice hockey player
Notable Deaths 2003 Sep 9 Edward Teller, Hungarian-American physicist and academic (born 1908)
Notable Deaths 2003 Sep 9 Don Willesee, Australian telegraphist and politician, 29th Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs (born 1916)
Historical Events 2001 Sep 9 Ahmad Shah Massoud, leader of the Northern Alliance, is assassinated in Afghanistan by two al-Qaeda assassins who…
Notable Births 2001 Sep 9 Hailey Van Lith, American basketball player
Notable Deaths 2001 Sep 9 Ahmad Shah Massoud, Afghan commander and politician, Afghan Minister of Defense (born 1953)
Selected Events 2001 Sep 9 Two al-Qaeda attackers assassinated Ahmad Shah Massoud, a pivotal Afghan resistance leader, two days before the…
Notable Births 2000 Sep 9 Ricky Pearsall, American football player
Notable Deaths 2000 Sep 9 Julian Critchley, English lawyer and politician (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 1999 Sep 9 Arie de Vroet, Dutch footballer and manager (born 1918)
Notable Deaths 1999 Sep 9 Catfish Hunter, American baseball player (born 1946)
Notable Deaths 1999 Sep 9 Ruth Roman, American actress (born 1922)
Selected Events 1999 Sep 9 The first banknotes of the Portrait Series of the Singapore dollar were introduced by the Board of Commissioners of…
Notable Births 1998 Sep 9 Jordan Nwora, Nigerian-American basketball player
Notable Deaths 1998 Sep 9 Lucio Battisti, Italian singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1943)
Notable Deaths 1998 Sep 9 Bill Cratty, American dancer and choreographer (born 1951)

This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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