An earthquake occurred in the province of Sichuan, China at 14:28:01 China Standard Time on May 12, 2008. Measuring at 8.0 , the earthquake's epicenter was located 80 kilometres (50 mi) west-northwest of Chengdu, the provincial capital, with a focal depth of 19 km (12 mi). The earthquake ruptured the fault for over 240 km (150 mi), with surface displacements of several meters. The earthquake was also felt as far away as Beijing and Shanghai—1,500 and 1,700 km away, respectively—where office buildings swayed with the tremor, as well as Bangkok, Thailand and Hanoi, Vietnam. Strong aftershocks, some exceeding 6 , continued to hit the area up to several months after the main shock, causing further casualties and damage. The earthquake also caused the largest number of geohazards ever recorded, including about 200,000 landslides and more than 800 quake lakes distributed over an area of 110,000 km2 (42,000 sq mi).
The 2008 Yingjiang earthquakes were a series of major earthquakes ranging from surface wave magnitude (Ms) 4.1 to 5.9 that struck Yingjiang County, Yunnan province, China between August 19 and September 3. It caused 5 deaths, 130 injuries, and RMB 2.7 billion in direct economic damage. USGS put the magnitude of the strongest one to Mw 6.0.
The 1970 Tonghai earthquake occurred at with a moment magnitude of 7.1 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme). The strike-slip rupture originated on the Red River Fault, which had not experienced an earthquake above magnitude 7 since 1700, and affected Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China. At least 10,000 people were killed, making it one of the deadliest in its decade. The tremor caused between US$5 and $25 million in damage, felt over an area of 8,781 km2 (3,390 sq mi). In Hanoi, North Vietnam, almost 483 km (300 mi) from the epicenter, victims left their homes as the rupture rumbled through the city.
The 2009 Xinjiang earthquake occurred in the Xinjiang of the People's Republic of China. It occurred at 9:47 a.m in Qapqal on January 25, 2009.
An earthquake occurred in the region of Abruzzo, in central Italy, at 03:32 CEST on 6 April 2009. It was rated 5.8 or 5.9 on the Richter scale and 6.3 on the moment magnitude scale; its epicentre was near L'Aquila, the capital of Abruzzo, which together with surrounding villages suffered the most damage. There were several thousand foreshocks and aftershocks since December 2008, more than thirty of which had a Richter magnitude greater than 3.5.
The 2009 Yunnan earthquake occurred with a moment magnitude of 5.7 in Yao'an County, Yunnan province, People's Republic of China on 9 July. At least one person died and over 300 were injured, with over 50 of these sustaining serious injuries.
An earthquake occurred on September 2, 2009, at 14:55:01 local time in West Java, Indonesia. The magnitude 7.0 earthquake killed at least 81 people, injured over 1,297, and displaced over 210,000. The quake was felt in the capital Jakarta, although damage there was minimal, and it was Indonesia's deadliest earthquake since the 2006 Pangandaran earthquake and tsunami.
The 2010 Yushu earthquake struck on April 14 and registered a magnitude of 6.9 Mw or 7.1 Ms. It originated in Yushu, Qinghai, China, at 7:49 am local time. According to the Xinhua News Agency, 2,698 people were confirmed dead, 270 missing and 12,135 injured, 1,434 of them severely. The epicenter was located in Rima village (日玛村/日麻村), Upper Laxiu township (上拉秀乡) of Yushu County, in remote and rugged terrain, near the border of Tibet Autonomous Region, about 30 km from Gyêgu town or Jyekundo, the seat of Yushu County, and about 240 km from Qamdo. The epicenter was in a sparsely populated area on the Tibetan plateau that is regularly hit by earthquakes.
The 2011 Tarlay earthquake occurred on 24 March in Shan State, Myanmar. The earthquake measured 6.8 and had an epicenter northwest of the border between Myanmar, Thailand and Laos. It occurred in a region accommodating tectonic deformation brought by the collision between the Indo-Australian and Eurasian plates. Strike-slip faulting along the Nan Ma Fault was identified as the cause. There were between 75 and 151 fatalities; including one death in Thailand. An additional 212 people were injured. Hundreds of buildings and some transport infrastructure were damaged in Myanmar and Thailand. In the aftermath of the disaster, the Burmese government provided aid and relief supplies to the affected region. Neighbouring countries China, India and Thailand provided monetary assistance. Several international humanitarian organizations also supported in the relief and recovery.
The June 2011 Christchurch earthquake was a shallow magnitude 6.0 earthquake that occurred on 13 June 2011 at 14:20 NZST. It was centred at a depth of 7 km (4.3 mi), about 5 km (3 mi) south-east of Christchurch, which had previously been devastated by a magnitude 6.2 MW earthquake in February 2011. The June quake was preceded by a magnitude 5.9 ML tremor that struck the region at a slightly deeper 8.9 km (5.5 mi). The United States Geological Survey reported a magnitude of 6.0 Mw and a depth of 9 km (5.6 mi).
On August 23, 2011, a magnitude 5.8 earthquake hit the Piedmont region of the U.S. state of Virginia at 1:51:04 p.m. EDT. The epicenter, in Louisa County, was 38 mi (61 km) northwest of Richmond and 5 mi (8 km) south-southwest of the town of Mineral. It was an intraplate earthquake with a maximum perceived intensity of VIII (Severe) on the Mercalli intensity scale. Several aftershocks, ranging up to 4.5 in magnitude, occurred after the main tremor.
The 2011 Sikkim earthquake occurred with a moment magnitude of 6.9 and was centered within the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area, near the border of Nepal and the Indian state of Sikkim, at on Sunday, 18 September. The earthquake was felt across northeastern India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and southern Tibet.
The 2011 Van earthquakes occurred in eastern Turkey near the city of Van. The first earthquake happened on 23 October at 13:41 local time. The shock had a magnitude of 7.1 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe). It occurred at a shallow depth, causing heavy shaking across much of eastern Turkey and lighter tremors across neighboring parts of the South Caucasus and Levant. According to Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency on 30 October, the earthquake killed 604 and injured 4,152. At least 11,232 buildings sustained damage in the region, 6,017 of which were found to be uninhabitable. The uninhabitable homes left as much as 8,321 households with an average household population of around 7.6 homeless in the province; this could mean that at least around 60,000 people were left homeless. The other 5,215 have been damaged but are habitable. A separate earthquake within the same earthquake system happened on 9 November at 21:23 local time. 38 people were killed and 260 people were injured in the 9 November earthquake.
The 2012 Indian Ocean earthquakes were magnitude 8.6 and 8.2 Mw undersea earthquakes that struck near the Indonesian province of Aceh on 11 April at 15:38 local time. Initially, authorities feared that the initial earthquake would cause a tsunami and warnings were issued across the Indian Ocean; however, these warnings were subsequently cancelled. These were unusually strong intraplate earthquakes and the largest strike-slip earthquake ever recorded.
On 7 September 2012, a series of earthquakes occurred in Yiliang County, Zhaotong, Yunnan. The two main shocks occurred at 11:19 and 12:16 China Standard Time. The earthquakes left 81 people dead and 821 injured. According to the officials, at least 100,000 people were evacuated and more than 20,000 houses were damaged.
The 2014 Yingjiang earthquake occurred on 24 May at in Yingjiang County, Yunnan Province, China, with a moment magnitude of 5.6 and a maximum perceived intensity of VII on the Mercalli intensity scale. The epicenter was in the town of Kachang. There were 14 aftershocks, according to the Yunnan provincial seismological bureau.
The 2014 Ludian earthquake struck Ludian County, Yunnan, China, with a moment magnitude of 6.1 on 3 August. The earthquake killed at least 615 people, injuring at least 2,400 others. At least 114 people remained missing. Over 12,000 houses collapsed and 30,000 were damaged. According to the United States Geological Survey, the earthquake occurred 29 km (18 mi) west-southwest of Zhaotong city at 16:30 local time (08:30 UTC).
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 2021 Maduo earthquake, also known as the 5.22 earthquake struck Madoi County in Qinghai Province, China on 22 May at 02:04 local time. The earthquake had a moment magnitude and surface-wave magnitude of 7.4. Highway bridges, roads and walls collapsed as a result of the earthquake. According to an anonymous source, at least 20 people were killed, 300 were injured, and 13 were missing. Officials stated that there were no deaths but 19 people sustained minor injuries. It was the strongest in China since 2008. It was assigned a maximum intensity of X in Machali, Maduo County on the China seismic intensity scale and Modified Mercalli intensity scale. This earthquake was preceded by another unrelated earthquake that occurred 5 hours earlier in Yunnan.
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.
