Portal:Disasters/Selected article/February 2007
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The Tangshan earthquake of July 28, 1976 is one of the largest earthquakes to hit the modern world, in terms of the loss of life. The epicentre of the earthquake was near Tangshan in Hebei, China, an industrial city with approximately one million inhabitants. The earthquake left 242,419 people dead, according to official figures, though some sources offer much higher estimates. A further 164,581 people were recorded as being severely injured.
The earthquake hit in the early morning, at 03:42:53.8 local time (1976-Jul-27 19:42:53.8 UTC), and lasted for around 15 seconds. Many sources list it as 8.2 on the Richter scale, but Chinese Government's official sources state 7.8. It was followed by a major 7.1 magnitude aftershock some 15 hours later, increasing the death toll. It was the first earthquake in recent memory to score a direct hit on a major city. The large loss of life caused by the earthquake can be attributed to the time it struck and how suddenly it struck. The earthquake lacked foreshocks that usually come with earthquakes of this magnitude. It also struck at just before 4 AM leaving many people unprepared as they lay asleep. Tangshan was thought to be in a region with a relatively low risk of earthquakes. Very few buildings had been built to withstand an earthquake, and the city lies on unstable alluvial soil.
The earthquake devastated the city over an area roughly 4 miles by 5 miles. Many of the people who survived the initial earthquake were trapped under collapsed buildings and killed by a 7.1 magnitude aftershock 15 hours after the initial tremor; several aftershocks measuring 5.0 to 5.5 on the Richter scale followed later. 78% of the industrial buildings, 93% of the residential buildings, 80% of the water pumping stations, and 14% of the sewage pipes in Tangshan were destroyed or severely damaged. The seismic waves spread far, with damage in cities such as Qinhuangdao and Tianjin, and a few buildings as far away as Beijing, 140 km from the epicenter, were damaged. Even people in cities as far away as Xi'an felt the tremors of the earthquake.
