Chinese Government donates 10,000 radios to support Boumerdès earthquake relief efforts

On September 22, 2003, the Chinese Government donated 10,000 radios to the Government of Algeria to support earthquake relief efforts.

The radios came in the wake of the 2003 Boumerdès earthquake, which occurred on May 21 at 19:44:21 local time in northern Algeria. The shock had a moment magnitude of 6.8 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme).

The epicentre of the earthquake was located near the town of Thénia in Boumerdès Province, approximately 60 km east of the capital Algiers.

The quake was the strongest to hit Algeria in more than twenty years – since 1980, when a magnitude 7.1 earthquake resulted in at least 2,633 deaths. Approximately 2,266 people were killed, 10,261 injured, and 200,000 left homeless as a result of the earthquake. Reports indicate more than 1,243 buildings were completely or partially destroyed.

Infrastructure was predictably damaged in Algiers, Boumerdès, Réghaïa and Thénia; roads in Algeria are generally of high quality, but many city streets and local roads were difficult to traverse because of debris from collapsed buildings. Overall, the Boumerdès Province was the hardest-hit region.

In the Boumerdès Province, several cities were heavily damaged, with Thénia, Zemmouri, and Boumerdès, being the worst affected.