On March 4, it is 33 years since a devastating earthquake hit Romania killing over 1,500 people and wounding another 11,000, Info-Prim Neo reports. The March 4, 1977 Vrancea earthquake measured 7.2 on the Richter scale. It lasted for about one minute. About 35,000 buildings were damaged, and the total damage was estimated at more than two billion dollars. Most of the damage was concentrated in Romania's capital Bucharet, where about 33 large buildings collapsed. The quake was felt in Moldova as well. The multistory buildings in Chisinau resisted owing to the correct calculations done when formulating the seismic map. The map was drawn by the Seismology Center of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova. That year, the Center received a State Award. The 1977 quake was preceded by a similar quake in November 1940. The Moldovan seismologists say the Vrancea earthquakes with a magnitude of over 7 on the Richter scale occur at an interval of about 33 years. Quakes measuring about 6 on the Richter scale happened in 1986 and 1990.