The 1991 Racha earthquake occurred in the province of Racha, Georgia, at 9:12 UTC on 29 April. It killed 270, left approximately 100,000 homeless and caused severe damage, including to several medieval monuments. It had a magnitude of 7.0. In other words, it was the most powerful earthquake recorded in the Caucasus.
How?
On April 29, 2 mountains in the area of Sachkhereti started to move. The magnitude was so strong, that within hours, the 2 big mountains united as one. A small village between the 2 mountains was crushed, everyone who couldn't make out, was buried beneath the mountains.
My grandfather comes from Sachkhereti, and when they heard about the new, the whole family was panicking and trying to reach family members in Sachkhereti. For days they couldn't reach them, my grandfather didn't know if every one if his friends were dead or alive.
"It was terrible," said Marina Ivanova, a pediatrician in Tbilisi, according to the Associated Press. "The building was shaking like a house of cards. We grabbed our children and rushed downstairs."
Luckily, after couple of days they were informed that their family members were safe.
Post-earthquake footage
There's a river called: 'Shouter' (ყვირილა) which flows through Sachkhereti. Although I don't know completely from where the name comes from, (I will need to ask my grandfather) I won't be surprised if it was named after this tragedy.
Leave a comment about what other facts/did you know-s I should post about Georgia.