Remembering the day when Banja Luka was hit by the strongest earthquake in BiH history

According to available data, several destructive earthquakes have occurred in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the past. However, the strongest earthquake ever recorded in BiH struck Banja Luka on 27 October 1969, with a measured magnitude of 6.6 on the Richter scale, writes the Bosnian news agency Patria (NAP).

The devastating earthquake began with an unusually strong „foreshock“ in the night of 26 October at 2:55 a.m. Tremors continued until 8:53 a.m., when time stood still for Banja Luka. The people of Banja Luka will remember this day forever.

The 1969 earthquake devastated the city. It claimed 15 lives, and a thousand people were seriously or lightly injured. Material damage was enormous. A total of 86,000 apartments were completely destroyed, and major damage was inflicted on schools (266), cultural facilities (146), health facilities (133), social and public administration buildings (152).

The economy also suffered significant losses. All companies operated at significantly reduced capacity in the following period, and some completely ceased production. The city of youth was left without it for the first time. After the earthquake, the authorities were forced to send primary and secondary school students from Banja Luka to finish the school year in various parts of the former Yugoslavia, writes NAP.

However, just a few years later, Banja Luka would become more beautiful than before. The enormous financial and material resources invested in the reconstruction of Banja Luka made this city one of the most beautiful in Bosnia and Herzegovina today, writes NAP.