Comparison
Within China's geography, the deadliest known earthquake in history occurred in 1556 in Shaanxi, China. The 1556 Shaanxi earthquake is estimated to have killed 830,000 people in China, although reliable figures from this period are hard to verify. Another earthquake is the 1920 Haiyuan earthquake in Gansu Province, which killed an estimated 235,000. In 1927 another earthquake struck in the same area, this time at Xining; measuring 8.6 on the Richter scale, it also resulted in 200,000 deaths. Other earthquakes that have caused an extreme loss of life in the same decade include the 1923 Great KantÅ earthquake, which killed 143,000 in Tokyo in 1923.
The 2008 Sichuan earthquake had the same measurement on the Richter scale at 8.0 in magnitude. It, however, occurred in a mountainous region where relief efforts were noticeably hampered by the geographical makeup of the land nearby. The Sichuan earthquake also had a much quicker and more organized response system than Tangshan, as the political, social and technological environment was different. The Chinese government allowed international aid and open media access to the disaster area.
Read more about this topic: 1976 Tangshan Earthquake
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