Natural calamity is no fun, posting status that you experienced it nothing to be rejoiced. But one should prepare themselves for the future and be more cautious and aware about what should they do during such an unfortunate event. Today, Nepal and few parts of India experienced Earthquake, with 7.7 in Richter scale. It is really horrifying around 150 people died in Nepal and still counting. Whereas in India, 5 deaths are being reported along with a few major casualties.
We take you down to the history of Humankind and the most dangerous earthquake that have ever occurred worldwide.
1. The 1960 Valdivia Earthquake
Perhaps the most dreadful and terrible earthquake in the human history. 22 May, 1960 in Chile was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded with a magnitude of 9.5 in the Richter scale and lasted for a horrifying 10 minutes. The epicenter was near Lumaco approximately 570 kilometres , south of Santiago, with Valdivia being the most affected city. This earthquake the life of 1655 people, injured 3000 and displaced two million. And, the after effect of the earthquake was even worse, as Tsunami hit that region increasing the death toll.
Most affected area :- The resulting tsunami affected southern Chile, Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, eastern New Zealand, southeast Australia, and the Aleutian Islands.
2. The 1964 Alaska Earthquake
Also known as the Great Alaskan earthquake or Good Friday earthquake, occurred at 5:36 P.M. AST on Good Friday, March 27 in Alaska with 9.2 magnitude in Richter Scale and also affected nearby regions of Canada. It lasted for four minutes and thirty-eight seconds, and is considered as the most powerful recorded megathrust earthquake in the U.S. and North American history. Though the damage caused was less compared to the Chilean earthquake, but the tsunami that accompanied with the earthquake took as many as 128 lives and caused overall US$311 million in damage.
Most affected area:- Anchorage sustained great destruction. Tsunamis also caused damage in Hawaii and Japan
3. The 2004 Sumatra Earthquake
This devastating earthquake occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on 26 December with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia with a magnitude of 9.1 in Richter Scale. The damage caused by the Tsunami and the earthquake was beyond imagination as it killed 230,000 people in 14 countries. It was one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history.
Most Affected Areas :- Indonesia was the hardest-hit country, followed by Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand.
4. The 2011 Tōhoku Earthquake
The undersea megathrust earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred at 14:46 JST (05:46 UTC) on Friday 11 March 2011, with a magnitude of 9.0 on richter Scale is expected to expected to take a toll of over 10,000 life. The World Bank’s estimated economic cost was US$235 billion, making it the costliest natural disaster in world history.
Most Affected Areas:- The north eastern ports of Hachinohe, Sendai, Ishinomaki and Onahama were destroyed.
5. The 1952 Kamchatka Earthquake
Three earthquakes, which occurred off the coast of Kamchatka Peninsula in far eastern Russia and the Soviet Union in 1737, 1923 and 1952, were megathrust earthquakes and caused tsunamis. The main earthquake struck at 16:58 GMT (04:58 local time) on November 4, 1952 with a magnitude of 9.0 on Richter Scale. This earthquake generated a tsunami that caused widespread damage in the Hawaiian Islands
Most Affected Areas:- The Kamchatka peninsula and the Kuril Islands were the worst affected and also the tsunami caused havoc in Alaska, Chile, and New Zealand.
6. The 2010 Chile Earthquake
he 2010 Chile earthquake occurred off the coast of central Chile on Saturday, 27 February at 03:34 local time with a magnitude of 8.8 in Richter Scale. The intense shaking lasted for about 3 minutes. The earthquake also triggered Tsunami, which killed at least 521 people, with 56 missing and 12,000 injured. More than 800,000 people were displaced with a total of 1.8m people affected across Chile, where damage was estimated at US$30 billion.
Most Affected Areas:- According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS) the cities experiencing the strongest shaking—VIII (Destructive) on the Mercalli intensity scale (MM)—were Arauco and Coronel.
7. The 1906 Ecuador-Colombia Earthquake
The 1906 Ecuador–Colombia earthquake occurred at 15:36 UTC on January 31, off the coast of Ecuador, near Esmeraldas. The earthquake had a magnitude of 8.8 and triggered a destructive tsunami that caused at least 500 casualties on the coast of Colombia. The tsunami traveled as far north as San Francisco, on the west coast of the US, and west to Hawaii and Japan.
Most Affected Areas:- The greatest damage from the earthquake & afterwards tsunami occurred on the coast between Río Verde, Ecuador and Micay, Colombia.
8. The 1965 Rats Island Earthquake
The 1965 Rat Islands earthquake occurred at 05:01 UTC, on 4 February (19:01) 3 February local time. It had a magnitude of 8.7 and triggered a tsunami of over 10 m on Shemya Island. The wave caused flooding on Amchitka Island, causing US$10,000 in property damage. Though it did not take any life.
Most Affected Areas:- Flooding from the tsunami caused $10,000 worth of damage on Amchitka Island. Minor damage from the earthquake was recorded on both Attu and Shemya islands in the form of cracks in runways.
9. The 2005 Sumatra (Nias) Earthquake
The Sumatra earthquake occurred on 28 March off the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia.The epicentre was 205 km north-west of Sibolga, Sumatra, at a depth of 30 km and it experienced earthquake with a magnitude of 8.6 in Richter Scale. This earthquake killed 1313, with over 400 people injured by the tsunami as far away as Sri Lanka.
Most Affected Areas:- Approximately 1300 people were killed by it, mostly on the island of Nias. It also caused widespread power outages in the Indonesian city of Banda Aceh.
10. The 1950 Assam – Tibet Earthquake
This earthquake occurred on August 15, and had a magnitude of 8.6. It is also the largest known earthquake to have not been caused by an oceanic subduction. Instead, this quake was caused by two continental plates converging.. The earthquake was destructive in both Assam and Tibet, and between 1,500 and 3,300 people were killed.
Most Affected Areas:- Many villages and towns were affected across Assam, China, Tibet and India.
Experiencing earthquake is no fun, Please try to move in to a safer place preferably an open ground much before you post updates on Facebook & Twitter. Life is precious more than Facebook. At least that’s what I believe in.
