- Also called:
- Wenchuan earthquake or Great Wenchuan Earthquake
- Chinese:
- Wenchuan dizhen or Wenchuan Da Dizhen
- Date:
- May 12, 2008
Sichuan earthquake of 2008
-
What was the Sichuan earthquake of 2008?
The Sichuan earthquake was a devastating earthquake that struck the mountainous central region of Sichuan province in southwestern China on May 12, 2008. The epicenter of the magnitude-7.9 quake was near the city of Dujiangyan, approximately 50 miles (80 km) west-northwest of Chengdu. The earthquake resulted from the Indian-Australian and Eurasian plates colliding along the Longmenshan Fault.
The quake flattened four-fifths of the structures in the affected area, destroying entire towns and villages. The final official Chinese government assessment reported almost 90,000 people dead or missing and presumed dead, including over 5,300 students. In the aftermath, the Chinese government deployed 130,000 soldiers and relief workers to the area.
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Where did the Sichuan earthquake occur in China?
The Sichuan earthquake of 2008 occurred in the mountainous central region of Sichuan province in southwestern China on May 12, 2008. The epicenter of the magnitude-7.9 quake was near the city of Dujiangyan, approximately 50 miles (80 km) west-northwest of Chengdu, the provincial capital. The earthquake brought enormous devastation to the region, destroying whole villages and towns in the mountains. Almost 90,000 people were either dead or missing.
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How powerful was the earthquake (what was its magnitude)?
The Sichuan earthquake of 2008 was a massive and devastating event that occurred in the mountainous central region of Sichuan province in southwestern China on May 12, 2008. The epicenter of the magnitude-7.9 quake (measured as magnitude 8.0 by the Chinese) was located near the city of Dujiangyan, about 50 miles (80 km) west-northwest of Chengdu. The earthquake led to the destruction of whole villages and towns, and the collapse of many schools. Almost 90,000 people were counted as dead or missing. In addition, nearly 375,000 people sustained injuries from falling debris and building collapses.
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What damage did the earthquake cause to buildings and infrastructure?
The Sichuan earthquake of 2008 caused massive damage to buildings and infrastructure in the mountainous central region of Sichuan province in southwestern China. About four-fifths of structures in the affected area were flattened, and entire villages and towns were destroyed.
Nearly 90,000 people were reported dead or missing. The death toll included over 5,300 children, most of whom were students, because thousands of schools collapsed. The earthquake also injured approximately 375,000 people due to falling debris and building collapses. Additionally, hundreds of dams, including two major ones, sustained damage. Millions of people were displaced by the quake, which cost an estimated $86 billion.
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How did the earthquake affect the people living in Sichuan?
The Sichuan earthquake of 2008 was a massive and devastating event that had a profound impact on the people living in the affected areas. Almost 90,000 people were counted as dead or missing and presumed dead in the final official Chinese government assessment. Nearly 375,000 were injured by falling debris and building collapses. Millions were made homeless. The earthquake flattened approximately four-fifths of the structures in the affected area, destroying entire villages and towns, and causing many schools to collapse. The officially reported death toll included more than 5,300 children, most of whom were students attending classes.
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What actions did the Chinese government and other groups take to respond and help after the earthquake?
After the Sichuan earthquake of 2008, the Chinese government quickly sent 130,000 soldiers and relief workers to the area. Recognizing the challenges, China requested international assistance after a few days. A three-day official mourning period was declared one week after the earthquake.
Due to the extensive damage, rescue efforts were difficult to coordinate, and many remote villages were hard to reach. The lack of modern rescue equipment also contributed to delays.
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Sichuan earthquake of 2008, massive and enormously devastating earthquake that occurred in the mountainous central region of Sichuan province in southwestern China on May 12, 2008. The epicentre of the magnitude-7.9 quake (measured as magnitude 8.0 by the Chinese) was located near the city of Dujiangyan, about 50 miles (80 km) west-northwest of Chengdu, the provincial capital, at a depth of 11.8 miles (19 km) below the surface.
The quake was caused by the collision of the Indian-Australian and Eurasian plates along the 155-mile- (249-km-) long Longmenshan Fault, a thrust fault in which the stresses produced by the northward-moving Indian-Australian plate shifted a portion of the Plateau of Tibet eastward. Compressional forces brought on by this shift sheared the ground in two locations along the fault, thrusting the ground upward by approximately 29 feet (about 9 metres) in some places. Numerous aftershocks occurred in the days, months, and years that followed, including a magnitude-5.0 event that struck Chengdu in May 2010. The Longmenshan Fault runs southwest to northeast along the eastern side of the Longmen Mountains (Longmen Shan) and separates the Plateau of Tibet from the flat Sichuan Basin.
The May 2008 quake flattened some four-fifths of the structures in the affected area. Whole villages and towns in the mountains were destroyed, and many schools collapsed. Almost 90,000 people were counted as dead or missing and presumed dead in the final official Chinese government assessment; the officially reported total killed included more than 5,300 children, the bulk of them students attending classes. In addition, nearly 375,000 people were injured by falling debris and building collapses. Hundreds of dams, including two major ones, were found to have sustained damage. Some 200 relief workers were reported to have died in mudslides in the affected area, where damming of rivers and lakes by rocks, mud, and earthquake debris made flooding a major threat until workers could open channels to drain the impounded water.
China’s government quickly deployed 130,000 soldiers and other relief workers to the stricken area, but the damage from the earthquake made many remote villages difficult to reach, and the lack of modern rescue equipment caused delays that might have contributed to the number of deaths. After a few days China asked for outside help. One week after the temblor, China declared three days of official mourning for the earthquake victims.
Millions of people were made homeless by the quake, the cost of which was estimated at $86 billion. Repair and rebuilding of housing and infrastructure in the affected areas were soon under way, though progress was slow in the remoter locations. Strong quakes again shook the region in August and September 2008, though they caused considerably less destruction and loss of life.
Several issues emerged in the aftermath of the disaster. One concerned a debate in the scientific community as to whether the large weight of water impounded by a reservoir situated near the epicentre of the quake could have helped trigger the temblor. Also, there was much discussion regarding allegations that shoddy construction was to blame for the catastrophic collapse of so many school buildings in the affected areas. Many questioned the official death toll given for children, stating that it was too low.
A magnitude-6.6 earthquake struck the region nearly five years later, on April 20, 2013. The epicentre of that quake was also located on the Longmenshan Fault, about 53 miles (85 km) south-southwest of the epicentre of the 2008 event and some 19 miles (30 km) north-northeast of the city of Ya’an. More than 200 people died and at least 13,000 were injured from falling debris and structural collapses caused by the quake.
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