Earthquakes are caused by the seismic and abrasive actions of tectonic plates. They are capable of inducing serious destructive effects on life and property depending on the magnitude at which they hit the topography. Ranging from minor (less than 2.5 on Richter scale) to alarming stages (more than 8.0 magnitude) these quakes differ in severity and intensity. Here’s a quick read to get you through top 10 life threatening Earthquake magnitudes ever recorded :-
- Valdivia, Chile (Magnitude – 9.5)
Damage costs took a profuse curve on 22 May 1960, hitting a US$ 550 Million in total. The Earthquake killed around 1600 people, displaced and injured over 200 million with a rupture zone extending for over 1000 kms. The severity spawned death rates and destruction in Hawaii, Japan and the Philippines.
- Alaska (Magnitude – 9.2)
The Alaskan Earthquake Tsunami claimed 128 lives and sustained US$ 311 million on 28th March, 1964. Anchorage was the most affected city with oscillations extending to parts of Canada and several kilometers away from the epicenter.
- Sumatra, Indonesia- 2004 (Magnitude – 9.1)
This Boxing Day Tsunami occurred on 26 December 2004, killing around 227,900 and displacing around 1.5 million individuals.
- Tohoku Earthquake, Japan (Magnitude – 9.0)
On 11 March 2011, Sendai, Japan was affected by powerful earthquake ripples killing more than 10,000 people. The aftershocks combined with tsunami annexed economic conditions, shutting down Nuclear reactors and other resources.
- Kamchatka, Russia (Magnitude – 9.0)
The Earthquake influenced a Tsunami on 4 November 1952, in the Kamchatka region that yielded a property damage of around US$ 1,000,000 in the Hawaiian Islands and waves of over 9 m at Kaena Point, Oahu.
- Maule, Chile (Magnitude – 8.8)
The 27th February, 2010 Earthquake: Bio-Bio, triggered intense tectonic disturbances across Central Chile that lasted for approximately 3 minutes. The Tsunami had it’s perilous effects on Talcahuano port, demolished several buildings at the capital city Santiago. Death tolls reached to 500, with around 25 people going missing.
- Ecuador Coast (Magnitude – 8.8)
On January,1906 the Ecuador – Columbia Earthquake hit the shoreline of Ecuador, near Esmeraldas. The seismic effect caused up roaring waves as high as 16 feet long, death tolls had risen tremendously.
- Alaskan Rat Islands (Magnitude – 8.7)
The Earthquake was reportedly caused by the disastrous effects of a Tsunami happened on 2 April, 1965. A high wave of 10 m originated at Shemya Island, engulfing the Amchitka Island and caused ruinous effects on property across the sector.
- Indonesia (Magnitude – 8.6)
Earthquake struck the Indonesian subcontinent on 28 March 2005 in Sumatra. The ripples originated from the epicenter, 205 km North- West of Sibolga district, killing more than 1300 people across the region. The belt hosted a active geological site for three of the fifteen most catastrophic Earthquakes ever happened, including the 2004 Boxing day Tsunami.
- Assam- Tibet (Magnitude – 8.6)
On 15 August, 1950 an Earthquake of magnitude 8.6 hit the regions of Assam and east Tibet. More than 780 people were killed in Tibet, leaving numerous homeless in Assam. Several regions suffered landslides and buildings collapsed into ruins. After striking the epicenter- Tibet, oscillations emerged across parts of Norway.
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