Date in year · 1979 · The 1970s

December 12, 1979

On December 12, 1979, the 8.2 Mw  Tumaco earthquake shakes Colombia and Ecuador with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), killing 300–600, and generating a large tsunami. The year's #1 song was "My Sharona" by The Knack. Ruth Beitia, Iván Alonso, Malcolm Christie would arrive in the same year.

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1979

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Featured · December 12, 1979

The 8.2 Mw  Tumaco earthquake shakes Colombia and Ecuador with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), killing 300–600, and generating a large tsunami.

An earthquake occurred at 02:59 local time on 12 December 1979, with the epicenter just offshore from the border between Ecuador and Colombia, near the port city of Tumaco. 2 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), it triggered a major tsunami, which was responsible for most of the estimated 300–600 deaths. The hardest hit area was Colombia's Nariño Department.

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Around 1979

The year in brief

1979 (MCMLXXIX) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1979th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 979th year of the 2nd millennium, the 79th year of the 20th century, and the 10th and last year of the 1970s decade.

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What happened

On December 12, 1979

1979 The 8.2 Mw  Tumaco earthquake shakes Colombia and Ecuador with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), killing 300–600, and generating a large tsunami.

Earthquake near Colombia and Peru

An earthquake occurred at 02:59 local time on 12 December 1979, with the epicenter just offshore from the border between Ecuador and Colombia, near the port city of Tumaco. 2 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), it triggered a major tsunami, which was responsible for most of the estimated 300–600 deaths. The hardest hit area was Colombia's Nariño Department.
1979 Coup d'état of December Twelfth occurs in South Korea.

1979 coup d'état in South Korea that brought Chun Doo-hwan to power

The coup d'état of December Twelfth or the 12·12 Military Insurrection was a mutiny which took place on 12 December 1979, in South Korea, where a secret society of military officers known as Hanahoe led by Major General Chun Doo-hwan mutinied against the Chief of Staff of the Republic of Korea Army General Jeong Seung-hwa. The coup led to Chun strengthening his military and political position in South Korea, leading to his outright seizure of power as president in 1980.