In this way the Helmholtz researcher has initiated a uniform “currency” valid in all regions of Europe and further afield, in other words a kind of euro for earthquake research. Gottfried Grünthal has played a significant part in developing the methods for assessing such intensity values which have been in uniform use in Europe since 1998. Reports from archives on past earthquakes are analysed: how and where was the event perceived by humans, what damage was suffered by buildings? The answers to these questions show the researchers where the epicentre of the earthquake was located and its intensity. “First of all we prepare an earthquake catalogue which extends as far back in time as possible”, explains Gottfried Grünthal. Earthquake hazard maps of exactly this type are being created by Gottfried Grünthal from the Helmholtz Centre in Potsdam – German Research Centre for Geosciences – GFZ and his colleagues in GFZ Section 2.6 “Seismic Hazard and Stress Field”. However, to take such precautions one must first know which regions are threatened by earthquakes in the first place and what damage is to be expected. It also emphatically proves that the countries located far away from the large earthquake zones in the world around the Mediterranean or the Pacific should also prepare themselves against such devastating catastrophes. The Basel earthquake of 1356 is not only the strongest quake documented in Central Europe north of the Alps by written records. According to one estimate 1,500 to 2,000 people could lose their lives in Switzerland alone, losses up to 60 million Euro are conceivable. The chemical and pharmaceutical industries, nuclear power plants and countless tanks containing petrol, diesel and kerosene harbour additional risks. About half a million people live in the Switzerland-France-Germany border triangle. Nowadays an earthquake of this magnitude would have much more serious consequences. Between 100 and 300 people are estimated to have lost their lives. The amount of property damage was enormous the number of deaths was comparatively low. Even in Bern, 71 kilometres away, a church vault collapsed. The main quake did not arrive until 10 pm, when it destroyed or badly damaged many buildings. By this time at the latest, many people fled the town, saving their lives.
When the bells for dinner rang at around 5 pm the earth shook four times.
Between lunch and afternoon snack at about 4 pm a first tremor shook the town with its 7,000 inhabitants.
The inhabitants of Basel had been warned on this particular October 18th.
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