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1556 Shaanxi earthquake Wikipedia

The Shanxi earthquake occurred on the morning of 14 February1556 in China, killing approximately 830,000 people. More than 97 counties in the provinces of Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan, Gansu, Hebei, Shandong, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu and Anhui were affected http://www.kepu.ac.cn/english/quake/ruins/rns03.html. It is the deadliest earthquake on record, though the number of fatalities is uncertain. A 500-mile area was destroyed and in some counties, sixty percent of the population was killed http://www.drgeorgepc.com/EarthquakesChina.html. Most of the population at the time lived in artificial caves in loess cliffs, many of which collapsed during the disaster.

Modern estimates give the earthquake a moment magnitude of approximately 8. Aftershocks continued several times a month for half a year http://www.kepu.ac.cn/english/quake/ruins/rns03.html. The epicenter was in Hua county in Shaanxi. It is also among the deadliest natural disasters in history, only outstripped by floods of China's Yellow River (Huang He).

Last Modified:   2005-11-04