Earthquakes in Europe. The most powerful earthquake in human history

The magnitude of the earthquake that took place in Japan was 8.8. It happened on March 11 and will never be forgotten, because in the entire history of the country, the earthquake was the strongest and largest. Speaking about the world, earthquakes happen quite often, however, fortunately, the consequences after them, so to speak, are not very damaging. But global disasters still happen.

There is an earthquake that people will remember for a long time. It is considered the largest in the last 100 years. The earthquake occurred in Haiti, it was officially recorded and documented. The date January 12, 2010 turned out to be deplorable for the Haitian population. It happened in the evening at 17-00. There was a shock with a magnitude of 7 on the Richter scale, this madness lasted for 40 seconds, and then there were smaller shocks, but up to 5. There were 15 such shocks, and the total was 30.

The power of such an earthquake was incredible, there are not enough words to describe it. But what are the words when this natural disaster claimed the lives of 232 thousand people (data vary around this mark). Millions of residents were left homeless, and the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince, was completely in ruins.

There is an opinion that such terrible consequences could have been avoided if the country's authorities had foreseen in advance the possibility of such earthquakes. Some publications wrote that after the disaster, many residents were left without food, water and shelter. Help was provided slowly, there was simply not enough of it. People stood in line for a long time to get food, with no end in sight. Naturally, such unsanitary conditions caused a surge in diseases, among which was cholera, which claimed the lives of hundreds of people.

A less powerful earthquake, which was placed in second place, was the earthquake of July 28, 1976 in the city of Tangshan (China). The strength of the earthquake was estimated at 8.2 points, as a result, 222 thousand civilians died, but, to be specific, there is no specificity in these numbers. Data is approximate. Many international organizations subsequently kept a death toll following the Tangshan earthquake. Some say that the death toll numbered up to 800 thousand people, and the tremors were 7.8 magnitude. There is no exact data, why they are being hidden and who is behind it is also unknown to anyone.

Already in 2004, people also had to endure an earthquake. It was recognized as one of the most destructive and one of the deadliest disasters on the planet. The earthquake affected Asia, reached the Indian Ocean, and passed from Indonesia all the way to eastern Africa. Its strength was 9.2 points on the scale, caused enormous costs and took the lives of 230 thousand people.

In such cases, statistics are always kept according to which the Eastern and South-Eastern lands of Asia are considered to be the lands most susceptible to earthquakes. For example, in the province of Sichuan (China) on May 12, 2008, there was an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8, during which 69 thousand people died, 18 thousand were missing, and approximately 370 thousand people were injured. This earthquake was ranked seventh among the largest.

In Iran, in the city of Bam on December 26, 2003, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.3 occurred. 35 thousand people died. This disaster was ranked 10th among all others.

Russia also felt the tragic consequences of the earthquakes. On March 27, 1995, an earthquake with a magnitude of 9 occurred in Sakhalin. 2,000 people died.

The night from October 5 to 6, 1948 in Turkmenestan turned out to be tragic for many, and for some it was the last. The strength of the earthquake at the epicenter was 9 points, and the magnitude was 7.3. There were two most intense impacts, lasting 5-8 seconds. The strength of the first is 8 points, the second is 9 points. And in the morning there was a third shock of 7-8 points. Over the course of 4 days, the earthquake gradually subsided. Almost 90-98% of all buildings in Ashgabat were destroyed. Approximately 50-66% of the population died (up to 100 thousand people).

Many argue that not 100, but 150 thousand people were carried away by the earthquake to the next world. The Soviet media was in no hurry to announce exact figures, and did not intend to. No haste was noticed in their action. They only said that this disaster claimed the lives of many people. But the consequences were still so great that even 4 military divisions arrived in Ashgabat to help the residents.

Once again China suffered from an earthquake. On December 16, 1920, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake occurred in Gansu Province. Its magnitude was 8.6. It has similarities to the Great China Earthquake. Many villages were razed to the ground, and the death toll ranged from 180 to 240 thousand people. This number includes 20 thousand people who died from the cold that took possession of them, and people had nowhere to hide from it.

Every year, more and more people on the planet turn their attention to natural disasters of various kinds. According to research in recent years, the Earth has entered an active phase of tectonic activity - it is well known that throughout its existence, the land topography and the outlines of the continents as a whole have repeatedly undergone various changes. If we take into account the contents of Plato's manuscripts, such semi-mythical great civilizations as Atlantis and Hyperborea disappeared from the face of the earth as a result of the tectonic activity of our planet. For this reason, many of our contemporaries are seriously thinking about the direction in which human civilization should develop so that we do not suffer the same sad fate. Perhaps we should finally understand that the Earth is a kind of gigantic living organism, any interference in the work of which can end very sadly for our world. The bowels of the planet should be used more carefully and economically by people for their own purposes. In this article we will look at the most destructive earthquakes in human history.

1. In the mid-16th century, in the city of Shenxi (China), the most destructive earthquake to date occurred, killing more than 800 thousand people!

2. In 1923, on the first day of autumn, the Japanese region of Southern Kanto felt the full force and power of tremors, which, according to some estimates, was about 12 points. In this region there are megacities such as Yokohama and Tokyo. More than 150 thousand people became victims of the disaster.

3. August 15, 1950 year, the most powerful earthquake was recorded in the Indian city of Assami (India), which claimed the lives of “only” 1000 people - the fact is that it was impossible to measure its strength on the Richter scale due to the excessive scale of the instrument’s needles. A short time later, seismologists officially attributed the element to 9 points on the Richter scale. However, it was so powerful that it even sowed a certain panic among scientists - some of them initially believed that the epicenter of the earth's crust was located in Japan, while others believed that it was in the United States.

As for the Indian state of Assam, the situation here was also very ambiguous - for a week in a row, powerful tremors shook the surface of the earth, every now and then forming faults and failures, swallowing entire villages along with their inhabitants without a trace. All this was accompanied by constant emissions of fountains of hot steam and superheated liquid into the sky. As a result of the damage received, many dams could not contain the pressure of the water reserves stored in them - many cities and villages were simply flooded. Fleeing from certain death, residents climbed to the tops of trees, because not everyone knew the main ones. It should be noted that this year it was many times greater than the scale of destruction that was the result of the second most powerful earthquake that took place in these parts in 1897. The victims of the earlier disaster were 1,542 people.

4. 05/22/1960– on the outskirts of the Chilean city of Valdivia in the afternoon, the most powerful officially recorded earthquake occurred. The strength of the tremors of the Great Chilean Earthquake - this is the name given to this natural disaster - was approximately 9.3-9.5 points.

5. March 27, 1964 - in the American part of the Alaska Peninsula, closer to six o’clock local time, something happened that the locals could not even imagine. The force of the tremors was 9.2 on the Richter scale. The epicenter of the disaster was at a depth of 20 kilometers in the northern part of the Gulf of Alaska. According to many scientists, it was this that caused the shift in the axis of rotation of our planet - as a result, its speed increased by 3 microseconds. The Great Chilean and Alaskan disasters are officially considered the most destructive and catastrophic in the history of mankind.

6. The earthquake that took place on July 28, 1976 late at night in the northeastern regions of China is considered the most destructive and terrible in terms of human casualties. Almost instantly, 650 thousand people became its victims - more than 780 thousand were injured and of varying degrees of severity. The strength of the shocks ranged from 7.9 to 8.2 points. The destruction was colossal. The epicenter of the disaster was located directly in Tangshan, a city with a population of millions. After several months, a huge space of ruins with a total area of ​​20 square kilometers remained on the site of the once flourishing, never-silent city.
According to eyewitnesses, shortly before the first wobble, the skies parted for many kilometers and shone with a bright light. At the end of the first blows, the plants and trees visually looked as if they had felt the effects of a steam roller. Some bushes were even burnt on some sides.

7. 7.12.1988— powerful tremors occurred on the territory of Armenia, the victims of which, according to the most conservative estimates, were 45 thousand people. Overnight, the city of Spitak, located near the epicenter, turned into a vast pile of ruins. Neighboring settlements - Kirovakan and Leninakan - were half destroyed. According to some calculations, the force of the shocks was almost 10 points on the Richter scale!

8. December 26, 2004- in the northwestern region of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, in the Indian Ocean, like a bolt from the blue, earthquakes with a magnitude of 9.1 to 9.3 on the Richter scale occurred. This disaster and the accompanying giant tsunami claimed the lives of more than 300 thousand people.

9. May 12-13, 2008– in the Chinese province of Sichuan, an earthquake with a power of 7.9 occurred, killing more than 70 thousand people.

10. March 11, 2011 One of the most powerful earthquakes of recent years occurred in Japan - its strength was estimated at 9 points on the Richter scale. The devastating consequences and the accompanying gigantic tsunami became the direct cause of a serious environmental disaster: the cooling systems of the nuclear power plant were damaged - the world was on the verge of radioactive pollution of the environment, which, to the deepest, could not be avoided. Albeit on a smaller scale, radiation leakage still occurred.

On August 26, 1883, the eruption of the Krakatoa volcano caused one of the most destructive earthquakes in history. We decided to recall other most powerful and terrible earthquakes.

Egyptian earthquake of 1201

This event was reflected in the chronicles of those years, and was also included in the Guinness Book as the most destructive. According to chroniclers, about a million people died in Syria. Perhaps the numbers told by historians are far from the truth, and there is a high probability that the facts have been exaggerated. What is known for certain is that this event led not only to large-scale destruction, but also to serious geopolitical changes and influenced the life of the entire region.

The list of the most destructive disasters in history includes the Ganja earthquake that occurred in 1139, which killed about 230,000 people. These consequences were caused by strong tremors with an amplitude of 11 points. Due to the fact that it occurred almost a thousand years ago, very little is known about this earthquake, and the main source of information is the description of the Armenian historian and poet Mkhitar Gosh. He describes cities reduced to ruins and a large number of casualties. Taking advantage of the earthquake, Turkish troops attacked the city, looting and killing the people who survived the earthquake.
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It happened in the province of Shenxi in 1556. This earthquake killed more than 850,000 people, making it one of the most destructive and widespread in human history. At the epicenter of the disaster, more than 60% of the people died: such huge casualties were caused by the fact that a large number of people lived in limestone caves, which easily collapsed even with small tremors. Historical records of those years say that most of the buildings were instantly destroyed, and the amplitude of the tremors was so great that the landscape was constantly changing: new ravines and hills appeared, rivers changed their location. The aftershocks that followed the earthquake, which lasted for several months after the tragedy, also caused serious destruction.

Eruption of Krakatoa volcano in 1883

Huge destruction was caused by the eruption of the Krakatoa volcano at the end of the nineteenth century. The prohibitive number of victims was avoided only due to the fact that the tsunami hit the less populated regions of the islands of Java and Sumatra. 40 thousand died, more than 800 thousand square kilometers of the territory of the volcano were covered with ash, which destroyed all life within a radius of several tens of kilometers from Krakatoa.
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Earthquake in 2010

Three years ago, a terrible tragedy occurred in Haiti, from which this small, poor country still cannot recover. A powerful earthquake and tsunami destroyed the entire infrastructure of the islands and forced the Haitians to engage in looting and robbery in order to survive in the current situation. The crime rate, anarchy, infections, and isolation from the outside world have soared to incredible heights and have worsened the situation tenfold. The dead number in the hundreds of thousands, the injured in the millions.

An earthquake is tremors and vibrations of the earth's crust caused by tectonic activity. Earthquakes are measured on a twelve point Richter scale. Where did the most destructive earthquakes in recorded history occur?

On May 22 at 14-55 local time, near the city of Valdivia, the most powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 9.3-9.5 occurred. It was called the Great Chilean Earthquake and was the most powerful since 1600.

On March 27, 1964, at 5:36 p.m. local time, an earthquake with a magnitude of 9.2 occurred in Alaska. The epicenter of this earthquake was in the northern Gulf of Alaska at a depth of 20 km. Many scientists suggest that as a result of this earthquake, the Earth's rotation axis shifted and its speed increased by three microseconds. Until today, these two earthquakes were considered the most powerful in history.

How can you measure the strength of earthquakes? Can the Richter scale convey the catastrophic consequences of this natural disaster? What points can be used to measure the destruction caused by the elements and human lives? Which earthquake is considered more destructive? The one that has the greatest power on the Richter scale or the one that caused the most severe economic damage? Or maybe measure it in human casualties or the environmental disasters that follow?

In 1556, in China, in the town of Shenxi, the most destructive earthquake occurred, which killed 830,000 people.

On December 7, 1988, in Armenia, an earthquake occurred (according to some estimates) with a magnitude of more than 10 points at the epicenter. As a result, 45,000 people died. The city of Spitak turned into ruins; Leninakan and Kirovakan were half destroyed.

On September 1, 1923, a magnitude 12 earthquake struck the Southern Kanto region (including Tokyo and Yokohama). 150,000 people died.

December 26, 2004, in the north-west of the island. Sumatra, an earthquake with a magnitude of 9.1-9.3 occurred in the Indian Ocean. More than 300,000 people became victims of this disaster and the subsequent tsunami.

On May 12 and 13, 2008, an earthquake occurred in Sichuan province, killing more than 69,000 people. On February 27, 2010, an earthquake occurred in Chile with a magnitude of 8.8. Its epicenter was in the Pacific Ocean.

The most recent of the strongest earthquakes occurred on March 11, 2011 in Japan, its strength was estimated at 9 points. This earthquake and the subsequent tsunami caused an environmental disaster. Then the cooling system at the nuclear power plant was damaged. The whole world watched the events in Japan with alarm. Unfortunately, nuclear contamination could not be avoided.

Recently, the majority of the population has increased interest in natural disasters. Events of recent years show that the Earth has entered an active phase of tectonic activity. Throughout its history, our planet has repeatedly changed the outlines of its continents and land topography. If you believe Plato, then it was during the period of tectonic activity of the planet that many great civilizations, such as Atlantis and Hyperborea, disappeared. Maybe we should think about the future path of our development so that we do not suffer the same fate. Or maybe we should understand that the Earth is a living, intelligent organism and it’s time for us to start treating its resources more carefully.

Occurred within a few minutes several miles off the coast of Haiti, their magnitudes were 7.0 and 5.9, respectively. In the capital of the republic, Port-au-Prince, several buildings collapsed as a result of two tremors. There are dead and wounded.

year 2009

In October, a series of strong earthquakes occurred in Sumatra (Indonesia). According to the UN, at least 1.1 thousand people were killed. Up to 4 thousand people were trapped under the rubble.

On the night of April 6, a devastating earthquake of magnitude 5.8 occurred near the historical city of L'Aquila in central Italy, killing 300 people, injuring 1.5 thousand, and more than 50 thousand were forced to flee their homes.

2008

On October 29, in the Pakistani province of Baluchistan, an earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale with an epicenter 70 km north of the city of Quetta (700 kilometers southwest of Islamabad) killed up to 300 people.

On May 12, in the Sichuan province in southern China, 92 km from the administrative center of the province - the city of Chengdu, a powerful earthquake of magnitude 7.9 occurred, which claimed the lives of up to 87 thousand people, 370 thousand were injured, and 5 million residents were left homeless. The main earthquake was followed by over ten thousand aftershocks.

The Sichuan earthquake was the strongest in China since the Tangshan earthquake (1976), which claimed about 250,000 lives.

2007

On August 15, in Peru, in the department of Ica, 161 kilometers from the capital Lima, the strongest earthquake in recent years occurred. As a result of tremors measuring 8.0 on the Richter scale, cities along the entire southern coast of the country were affected. At least 519 people were killed and about 1,500 people were injured. Almost 17 thousand people were left without electricity and telephone communications. The most affected cities were the southern coast, Chincha Alta, Pisco, Ica, as well as the capital Lima.

2006

On May 27, a magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck the island of Java in Indonesia, killing 6,618 people. The city of Yogyakarta and its surrounding areas suffered the most. The earthquake destroyed about 200 thousand houses and seriously damaged the same number of buildings. About 647 thousand people were left homeless.

2005 year

On October 8, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.6 on the Richter scale in Pakistan became the strongest on record in seismic observations in South Asia. According to official data, more than 73 thousand people died, including 17 thousand children. According to some estimates, the death toll was more than 100 thousand people. More than three million Pakistanis were left homeless.

On March 28, a powerful earthquake measuring 8.2 on the Richter scale occurred off the coast of the Indonesian island of Nias, located west of Sumatra. About 1,300 people died.

2004

On December 26, one of the most powerful and destructive earthquakes in modern history occurred off the eastern coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The tidal wave caused by this earthquake with a magnitude of 8.9 on the Richter scale hit the coasts of Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia.

The total number of victims in the countries affected by the tsunami is still not known exactly, however, according to various sources, this figure is approximately 230 thousand people.

The material was prepared based on information from RIA Novosti and open sources