Geoffrey of Donjon dated the earthquake to shortly before dawn on
20 May 1202 CE. He wrote that some cities were overthrown, some destroyed, and
others, due to damage, were
threatened with ruin
. He described severe
damage in Acre, where
some of the towers, the ornate royal palace, and walls were ruined
.
Tyre suffered
an overthrow of its walls, towers, churches and houses
. Tripoli endured
considerable harm to its walls and houses, and death to its citizens
but was less
damaged than Tyre.
The towers, walls, houses and fortifications of Arches [ʿArqa] were razed;
their people were killed, and the localities are deserted
. The fortresses of
Krak [Hisn al-ʿAkrad] and Margat [Marqab] suffered considerable damage
but
could still hold out against enemy attacks
. Finally, he added that
Antioch and parts of Armenia were shaken
but
did not suffer damage to the same lamentable extent
.