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576 BCE
Earthquake of Antioch
The earthquake struck without warning on a morning between May 20th through the 29th
and killed an estimated quarter of a million people.
Based on the severity of the destruction, scientists estimate that the earthquake was between a category 8 and 9 on the Mercalli intensity scale. -
1202
Egypt/Syria Earthquake
The deadliest earthquake in recorded history, 13th century Egypt and Syria were rocked by a megaquake that led to a cascading cycle of disasters such as floods, tsunamis, and then famine from devastated crops.Over 1.1 million people die. -
1556
Shaanxi earthquake
Is one of the deadliest earthquakes on record...It happen on the morning of January 23rd during the Ming dynasty.An area of 520 miles (840 kilometers) wide was completely flattened by the tremors, and an estimated 830,000 people died. -
Great Bengal famine
The Great Bengal famine struck territories in modern West Bengal, Bangladesh, Assam, Odisha, Bihar, and Jharkhand.Initial reports of starvation were largely ignored by the East India Company, until mass starvation struck in 1770.A series of disease outbreaks and mismanagement by the British ultimately resulted in over 10 million deaths among the native population. -
Chinese Drought
A three year drought brought on by failure of regional monsoons devastated crops across the nation, have between 9 to 13 million deaths from starvation.
Perhaps they felt guilty over their historical inaction. In the face of catastrophe, the British actually organized a global relief effort organized by British missionary Timothy Richard -
Yellow River Flood
China is home to some of the world's mightiest rivers, and as a result is prone to the most catastrophic floods in history.
After days of extremely heavy flooding, the Yellow River burst its banks,flooding large portions of eastern China and covering an estimated 50,000 square miles.
The initial floods left 2 million people homeless, and the resulting famine and lack of essentials led to the death of an estimated 900,000 people. -
Flu Pandemic
the deadliest in history, infecting 500 million people and killing between 20 and 50 million of them.Yet the strain of flu responsible was no more virulent or deadly than the modern flu, and
instead became deadly by ravaging a world population suffering from poor hygiene, concentrations of war casualty hospitals, and poor nutrition- all side effects of the first world war. -
The span of middle China
Preceded by an abnormally heavy monsoon season that resulted in nine cyclones in one month just prior to the flood, China was alternatively rocked by heavy drought and then extreme rainfall.
This sudden rainfall led to the Yangtze, Yellow, and Huai rivers bursting their banks and flooding central China, killing millions of people and causing enormous property damage. -
Bhola Cyclone
Striking East Pakistan and India's West Bengal on November 12th, 1970, Bhola Cyclone is one of the worst storms the region has ever seen and the deadliest storm in recorded history.
Due to a severely inadequate early warning system in Pakistan, the total death toll is estimated to be as high as 500,000. -
North Korea's Arduous March
Nearly half a decade in length, the Arduous March started as a famine which was quickly exasperated by a series of natural disasters.
With its roots in ineffective government and the collapse of North Korea's patron-state,the Soviet union, natural disasters intensified the effects of the resulting famines, leading to over 500,000 deaths.