In 1960, the first tremor of a series hits Valdivia, Chile. By the time they end, the quakes and their after effects kill 5,000 people and leave another 2 million homeless. Registering a magnitude of 7.6, the first earthquake was powerful and killed several people. It turned out to be only a foreshock, however, to one of the most powerful tremors ever recorded.
At 3:11 p.m. the following afternoon, an 8.5-magnitude quake rocked southern Chile. The epicenter of this tremendous shaking was just off the coast under the Pacific Ocean. There, the Nazca oceanic plate plunged 50 feet down under the South American plate. The earthquake caused huge landslides of debris down the mountains of the region, as well as a series of tsunamis in the coastal region of Chile. At 4:20 p.m., a 26-foot wave hit the shore, taking most structures and buildings with it when it receded. But the worst was still to come. Minutes later, a slower 35-foot wave rolled in; it is estimated that this wave killed more than 1,000 people, including those who had thought they had moved safely to high ground.
Given the tremendous force of the quake, the death toll could have been far higher. A foreshock 30 minutes prior to the large tremor had forced many people outside, where they were less vulnerable to structural collapses. In addition, the people of the area knew to expect a tsunami and most evacuated the coast immediately.
After leaving Chile, the tsunami traveled hundreds of miles west toward Hawaii, the Philippines and Japan, where hundreds also died. In fact, the waves set off by this earthquake bounced back and forth across the Pacific Ocean for a week. Aftershocks were recorded for a full 30 days after the main tremor.
800+
Approximately 1,000-1,500 people were killed in the Great Chilean Earthquake that occurred on May 22, 1960.
Approx. 6400 people died in the Kobe earthquake most suffocated or were burnt to death in the flames that spread through Kobe on the 17th January 1995. So far the amount of people that have died in the Japanese earthquake is 10,000 people.
The Shaanxi earthquake in China on January 23, 1556 had the largest number of recorded deaths. The number of deaths was between 820,000 and 830,000 people due to a magnitude 8.0 quake in a densely populated area.
The Shaanxi earthquake in 1556 is considered the deadliest earthquake in recorded history, with estimates of over 800,000 fatalities. It caused widespread destruction in the Shaanxi, Henan, and Gansu provinces in China.
17 thousand died 24 thousand injured 600 thousand left homeless
Approximately 1,000-1,500 people were killed in the Great Chilean Earthquake that occurred on May 22, 1960.
The biggest earthquake ever recorded, which occurred near the cities of Valdivia and Puerto Montt, Chile, in 1960. Known as the Great Chilean Earthquake, the quake measured an impressive 9.5 on the Richter scale. The death toll of the Great Chilean Earthquake is not known, although the USGS estimates about 1,655 people died, and the earthquake may have caused as much as $800 billion US Dollars in damage.
Chile lies on the boundry of two techtonic plates, the South American plate and the Nazca plate. It has experienced many earthquakes. The two most notable are the 1960 Great Chilean earthquake also know as the Valdivia earthquake. It was the largest earthquake ever measured and recorded. It was also the location for the 5th largest recorded earthquake, the 2010 Chilean earthquake of February 27th, 2010.
About 10000 people died after the earthquake.
Approx. 2000
100 people died in Aquila because of an earthquake
There were about 20,000 people who died in the earthquake of Rat Island, Alaska
230,000 people died in Hati's Earthquake! :(
Depends on where your from. Haiti was recent. In the U.S. the California ones are famous but only a few thousand died. total, in all of them. In 2001 20,000 died,and in 2005 80,000 died in India. Indonesia gets lots in 2004, 226,328 people died.
62 People died in the Loma Prieta earthquake in Oct 1989.
185 people lost their lives in the Christchurch earthquake in 2011.
an earthquake kills about 1000 people