What happened during the 2008 Sichuan earthquake?

On May 12, 2008, a massive magnitude-7.9 earthquake struck the mountainous central region of Sichuan province, China. The disaster was caused by the collision of the Indian-Australian and Eurasian plates along the Longmenshan Fault, which shifted a portion of the Plateau of Tibet eastward and sheared the ground.12

The impact was catastrophic:
* Casualties: Nearly 90,000 people were counted as dead or missing, including more than 5,300 children, and approximately 375,000 people were injured.12
* Destruction: Roughly four-fifths of structures in the affected area were flattened, including thousands of schools and entire villages.12
* Aftermath: Millions were left homeless, and the disaster caused an estimated $86 billion in damage.1

The event sparked significant controversy, particularly regarding allegations of shoddy construction in school buildings that collapsed and debates over whether the weight of water in nearby reservoirs may have helped trigger the quake. While the Chinese government deployed 130,000 relief workers, the remote, mountainous terrain and lack of specialized equipment initially hindered rescue efforts.1