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Ten largest earthquakes in the world, 1900-1994. USGS National Earthquake Information Center.
Chronological
Alphabetical
Magnitude
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Ruins of the Cathedral and the Basilica of Santa Maria. (Copper engraving, caption in French and Portuguese; no.5 in the Le Bas series, Paris, 1757.) Kozak Collection, Earthquake Engineering Research Center, UC Berkeley.
Date: November 1, 1755
Time: 9:40 A.M.
Location: Just offshore of Lisbon
Magnitude: MW 8.6 (estimated)
Tsunami: Wave height 15 meters (50 feet)
Deaths: 60,000 in Lisbon; 10,000 in Morocco
Damage: Lisbon was leveled by the earthquake and subsequent fire
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Via Cavour, Messina. Typical destruction of masonry walls and timber interiors. Steinbrugge Collection, Earthquake Engineering Research Center, UC Berkeley.
Date: December 28, 1908
Time: 5:21 A.M.
Location: Messina Straits
Magnitude: MW 7.5
Modified Mercalli Intensity: XI
Depth: 8-10 km (5-6 miles)
Fault: Messina fault
Tsunami: Wave height: 6 meters (~20 feet)
Deaths: 120,000
Damage: Messina almost entirely destroyed
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Port, Puerto Montt, Chile. This entire area lurched toward the bay. The fill was silty material and was not stable. Note twisted rails. Steinbrugge Collection, Earthquake Engineering Research Center, UC Berkeley.
Date: May 22, 1960
Time: 3:11 P.M. AST
Location: About 160 km (100 miles) WNW of Puerto Montt, in the Eastern Pacific
Depth: 33 km (~20 miles)
Magnitude: MW 9.5
Fault: Andean deep seismic zone
Rupture Length: 1000 km (621 miles) long, 200 km (124 miles) wide
Maximum Vertical Displacement: 2 meters subsidence, 6 meters uplift
Deaths and Injuries: Southern Chile: over 2000 killed, 3000 injured, 2 million homeless; Hawaii (tsunami): 61 deaths; Japan (tsunami): 138 deaths; Philippines (tsunami): 32 dead or missing
Damage: Southern Chile: $550 million; Hawaii: $75 million; Japan: $50 million; U.S. west coast: $500,000
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Left: Aerial photo of Casma taken before the earthquake. The central plaza can be seen in the lower left corner for reference. Construction is the adobe Spanish-type construction. Right: Aerial photo of Casma after the earthquake showing almost total destruction. Steinbrugge Collection, Earthquake Engineering Research Center, UC Berkeley.
Date: May 31, 1970
Time: A.M. PST
Location: Offshore of central Peru
Depth: 64 km (40 miles)
Magnitude: MS 7.8
Fault Type: Normal
Deaths and Injuries: 66,000 killed; 100,000 injured
Damage: $530 million
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Collapsed railroad building. Reinforced concrete roof trusses and columns. Steinbrugge Collection, Earthquake Engineering and Research Center, UC Berkeley.
Date: July 28, 1976
Time: 3:42 A.M.
Location: Tangshan
Depth: 11 km (6.8 miles)
Magnitude: MW 7.6
Modified Mercalli Intensity: XI
Fault: Tancheng-Lujiang (Tan-Lu) fault system
Fault Type: Right-lateral strike slip
Rupture Length: 150 km (93 miles)
Maximum Horizontal Displacement: 7 meters (23 feet)
Deaths and Injuries: 250,000-500,000 killed; 500,000 injured
Damage: $5.6 billion
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Collapsed building, area between the Plaza de la Constitution and Zona Rosa. Steinbrugge Collection, Earthquake Engineering Research Center, UC Berkeley.
Date: September 19, 1985
Time: 7:17 A.M.
Location: Near the coast at the border between the states of Michoacan and Guerrero
Magnitude: MW 7.9
Modified Mercalli Intensity: IX
Fault: Michoacan segment of the Mexican Trench subduction zone
Tsunami: Wave height: 2 meters (6.5 feet)
Deaths and Injuries: 10,000 killed; 50,000 injured
Damage: $5 billion
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Nishinomiya Bridge. Kobe Geotechnical Collection, Earthquake Engineering Research Center, UC Berkeley.
Date: January 17, 1995
Time: 5:46 A.M.
Location:
Depth: 15-20 km (~9.3-12.5 miles)
Magnitude: MW 6.9
Modified Mercalli Intensity: X-XI
Fault: Median Tectonic Line (MTL) fault system; Nojimo fault, Rokko fault
Fault Type: Right-lateral strike slip
Rupture Length: Below surface: 60 km (37 miles); surface: 9 km (5.6 miles)
Maximum Horizontal Displacement: 2.1 meters (6.9 feet)
Maximum Vertical Displacement: 1.5 meters (4.9 feet)
Deaths and Injuries: 5500 killed; 35,000 injured
Damage: $147 billion
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