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1923: Japan, 142,000 dead
Two minutes before noon, a 7.9-magnitude quake shakes Kanto in Japan. More than 142,000 people die in the earthquake and resulting fire, which destroys Tokyo. -
1932: China, 70,000 dead
A 7.9-magnitude quake kills around 70,000 in Gansu province, in northwest China. -
1948: Turkmenistan, 110,000 dead
At least 110,000 people are killed in a 7.3-magnitude quake in and around Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, which at the time was part of the Soviet Union. -
1970: Peru, 67,000 dead
A 7.9-magnitude quake off Peru's north coast leaves some 67,000 dead, many in the mountain city of Huaraz that was buried by a mudslide. -
1976: China, 242,000 dead
A quake measuring 7.8, according to the Chinese authorities, (7.5 according to the US Geological Survey), strikes near the industrial city of Tangshan in northeastern Hebei province. The official death toll is given as 242,000 but is believed to be significantly higher. -
2004: Southeast Asia, 230,000 dead
A 9.1-magnitude earthquake strikes off the coast of Sumatra, triggering a tsunami that kills more than 230,000 people throughout the region, including 170,000 in Indonesia alone. -
2005: Kashmir, 73,000 dead
More than 73,000 people, most in Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province and the Pakistani-administered zone of Kashmir are killed A further 3.5 million are displaced. -
2008: China, 87,000 dead
More than 87,000 people, including thousands of school pupils, are left dead or missing when a 7.9-magnitude quake strikes China's southwestern Sichuan province. The quake causes outrage after it emerges that 7,000 schools were badly damaged, triggering accusations of shoddy construction, corner-cutting and possible corruption, especially as many other buildings nearby held firm. -
2010: Haiti, 200,000 dead
A magnitude 7 quake devastates the capital Port-au-Prince and the surrounding region. The quake cuts the country off from the rest of the world for 24 hours, killing more than 200,000 people, leaving 1.5 million homeless and shattering much of Haiti's frail infrastructure. -
2023: Türkiye and Syria, 50,000 dead
A 7.7-magnitude quake strikes southern Türkiye and neighbouring Syria. One of the biggest quakes in Türkiye in nearly a century, which is followed by a 7.6-magnitude tremor, kills more than 50,000.