Since 1900, the earthquake in Tangshan in China in 1976 caused the highest number of deaths, reaching over 240,000. However, some estimate the number to be over 650,000 fatalities. The earthquake in Haiti in 2010 has the second highest death toll, but also here numbers vary from just above 100,000 to over 300,000 fatalities. Four of the 10 deadliest earthquakes during the period were registered in China.
Earthquakes with the highest death toll worldwide from 1900 to September 2023
Please note that the death count for the different disasters vary from source to source, as these are extremely difficult to count.
*Only includes the death toll for Indonesia, which was the country affected the most. Death tolls for the whole tsunami are usually between 220,000 and 230,000, with around 44,000 people missing.
The earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria in February 2023 caused more than 50,000 fatalities.
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Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED), & BBC. (September 4, 2023). Earthquakes with the highest death toll worldwide from 1900 to September 2023 [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved September 20, 2024, from https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/266325/death-toll-in-great-earthquakes/
Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED), und BBC. "Earthquakes with the highest death toll worldwide from 1900 to September 2023." Chart. September 4, 2023. Statista. Accessed September 20, 2024. https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/266325/death-toll-in-great-earthquakes/
Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED), BBC. (2023). Earthquakes with the highest death toll worldwide from 1900 to September 2023. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: September 20, 2024. https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/266325/death-toll-in-great-earthquakes/
Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED), and BBC. "Earthquakes with The Highest Death Toll Worldwide from 1900 to September 2023." Statista, Statista Inc., 4 Sep 2023, https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/266325/death-toll-in-great-earthquakes/
Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) & BBC, Earthquakes with the highest death toll worldwide from 1900 to September 2023 Statista, https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/266325/death-toll-in-great-earthquakes/ (last visited September 20, 2024)
Earthquakes with the highest death toll worldwide from 1900 to September 2023 [Graph], Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED), & BBC, September 4, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://www-statista-com.ezproxy.canberra.edu.au/statistics/266325/death-toll-in-great-earthquakes/
