The 1920 Haiyuan earthquake occurred on December 16 in Haiyuan County, Ningxia Province, Republic of China at 19:05:53. It was also called the 1920 Gansu earthquake because Ningxia was a part of Gansu Province when the earthquake occurred. It caused destruction in the Lijunbu-Haiyuan-Ganyanchi area and was assigned the maximum intensity on the Mercalli intensity scale. About 258,707-273,407 died, making it one of the deadliest earthquakes in China and disasters in China by death toll.
The 1868 Hawaiʻi earthquake was the largest recorded in the history of Hawaiʻi island, with an estimated magnitude of 7.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). The earthquake occurred at 4 p.m. local time on April 2, 1868, and caused a landslide and tsunami that led to 77 deaths. The aftershock sequence for this event has continued up to the present day.
The 1935 Helena earthquake occurred at in Montana, with an epicenter near Helena. It had a magnitude of 6.2 on the surface-wave magnitude scale and a maximum perceived intensity of VIII (Severe) on the Mercalli intensity scale. The temblor on that date was the largest of a series of earthquakes that also included a large aftershock on October 31 of magnitude 6.0 and a maximum intensity of VIII. Two people died in the mainshock and two others died as a result of the October 31 aftershock. Property damage was over $4 million.
The 1925 Dali earthquake occurred at 14:42 UTC on 16 March. It had an estimated magnitude of 7.0 on the surface-wave magnitude scale and a maximum perceived intensity of at least IX (Violent) on the Mercalli intensity scale. It had an epicenter in the province of Yunnan in southern China and killed an estimated 5,000 people.
The 1948 Litang earthquake (1948年理塘地震) occurred on May 28, 1948, at 07:11 UTC. It was located near Litang, China. Now situated in the Sichuan Province, Litang County was then called Lihua (理化) County and belonged to the defunct Xikang Province. The earthquake had a magnitude of 7.2, or 7.3.
The 1879 Gansu earthquake occurred at about 04:00 local time on 1 July. It had an estimated magnitude of 8.0 on the scale and a maximum perceived intensity of XI (Extreme) on the Mercalli intensity scale. The epicenter was in Wudu District in southern Gansu, close to the border with Sichuan. It caused widespread damage and killed an estimated 22,000 people.
The Xianshuihe fault system or the Yushu-Ganzi-Xianshuihe fault system is a major active sinistral (left-lateral) strike-slip fault zone in southwestern China, at the eastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. It has been responsible for many major earthquakes, and is one of the most seismically active fault zones in China.
The 1847 Zenkoji earthquake occurred at about 21:30 local time on 8 May at Nagano, Japan. It had a magnitude of 7.4 on the surface-wave magnitude scale. It caused the destruction of many houses in Nagano and at least 8,600 people were killed. The earthquake triggered many landslides, the largest of which dammed the Sai River. 19 days later, the failure of this earthquake dam caused a flood that destroyed many more houses and killed 35 people.
The Afyon Province of western Turkey was struck by an earthquake measuring 6.5 on 3 February 2002 at 10:11 local time. It had a maximum felt intensity of VIII (Severe) on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale. It damaged hundreds of buildings and caused the deaths of 44 people and a further 318 injuries.
The 1988 Lancang–Gengma earthquakes, also known as the 11.6 earthquakes by the Chinese media were a pair of devastating seismic events that struck Lancang and Gengma counties, Yunnan, near the border with Shan State, Burma. The earthquake measured moment magnitude (Mw ) 7.0 and was followed 13 minutes later by a 6.9 Mw shock. These earthquakes were assigned a maximum China seismic intensity of IX and X, respectively. Between 748 and 939 people were killed; more than 7,700 were injured. Both earthquakes resulted in US$270 million in damage and economic losses. Moderately large aftershocks continued to rock the region, causing additional casualties and damage.
The 1973 Luhuo earthquake struck near the town of Zhaggo in Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan Province, China on February 6, 1973, with a magnitude of 7.6 . The earthquake had a maximum intensity of X (Extreme) on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale. It resulted in between 2,175 and 2,204 deaths and a further 2,743 injuries. Serious and widespread destruction occurred in Luhuo County.
The 1995 Menglian earthquake or 1995 Myanmar–China earthquake occurred on 12 July at 05:46:43 local time in the Myanmar–China border region. The earthquake had an epicenter on the Myanmar side of the border, located in the mountainous region of Shan State. It registered 7.3 on the Chinese surface wave magnitude scale (Ms ) and 6.8 on the moment magnitude scale (Mw ). With a maximum Mercalli intensity assigned at VIII, it killed 11 people and left another 136 injured. Over 100,000 homes in both countries were destroyed and 42,000 seriously damaged. Some damage to structures were also reported in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, Thailand. The low death toll from this earthquake was attributed to an early warning issued prior to it happening. Precursor events including foreshocks and some seismic anomalies led to an evacuation of the area before the mainshock struck. It is thought to be one of the few successfully predicted earthquakes in history.
An earthquake occurred on June 19, 1718, in Tongwei County, Gansu Province, Qing dynasty, present-day China. The estimated surface wave magnitude (Ms ) 7.5 earthquake was designated a maximum Modified Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme), causing tremendous damage and killing 73,000 people.
The 1850 Xichang earthquake rocked Sichuan Province of Qing China on September 12. The earthquake which caused major damage in Xichang county had an estimated moment magnitude of 7.3–7.9 Mw and a surface wave magnitude of 7.5–7.7 Ms . An estimated 20,650 people died.
The 1654 Tianshui earthquake occurred on July 21 in Tianshui, Gansu Province, Ming dynasty sometime between 21:00 and 23:00 local time. The event had an estimated moment magnitude of 7.0 and was assigned a maximum intensity of XI on the China seismic intensity scale. Resulting in extreme damage and affecting at least four provinces, the quake killed approximately 30,000 people.
The 1923 Renda earthquake occurred on March 24 at 20:40 local time between the counties of Daofu and Luhuo in Sichuan, China. The estimated 7.3 earthquake was assigned a maximum modified Mercalli intensity scale rating of X (Extreme). Severe damage occurred in Sichuan, killing an estimated 4,800 people.
The 1955 Zheduotang earthquake, also known as the Kangding earthquake occurred on April 14 at 09:29:02 local time near the city of Kangding in the Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan. The earthquake had a moment magnitude of 7.0 and a surface wave magnitude of 7.1 and struck at a depth of 10 km. Severe damage occurred in Kangding with the loss of 70 lives.
On April 11, 1870, a moment magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck Batang County in Sichuan, China. The earthquake had a maximum Modified Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). The earthquake and a large fire resulted in between 2,300 and 5,000 fatalities.
A 6.7 earthquake struck Luding County in Sichuan province, China on 5 September 2022 at 12:52:19 local time. The epicenter was located 226 km (140 mi) from Chengdu, or 43 km (27 mi) southeast of Kangding. Ninety-three people died, 424 were injured and 24 remained missing. More than 13,000 homes and other infrastructure were damaged or destroyed. It was the largest earthquake to strike the province since 2017.
On 20 March 1536, Xichang and Mianning, Sichuan, Ming dynasty, were struck by an earthquake with an estimated magnitude of 7.3 . It had a maximum felt intensity of X (Extreme) on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale, and caused thousands of deaths.
