(Reuters) – Some of the world’s most deadly earthquakes in the past two decades are listed below, after a 7.8 magnitude quake struck central Turkey and northwest Syria on Monday and killed hundreds of people.
– Aug. 14, 2021 – HAITI – A 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck southern Haiti, killing more than 2,200 people and destroying or damaging about 13,000 homes.
– Sept. 28, 2018 – INDONESIA – A 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the island of Sulawesi, resulting in a 1.5 metre tsunami and killing more than 4,300 people.
– Nov. 12, 2017 – IRAN – A magnitude 7.3 earthquake shook the eastern Kermanshah region, killing more than 400 people. At least six people died in neighbouring Iraq.
– Sept. 19, 2017 – MEXICO – A 7.1 magnitude quake hit central Mexico, killing at least 369 people and causing more devastation in the capital than any temblor since an earthquake in 1985 that killed thousands.
– Aug. 24, 2016 – ITALY – A 6.2 magnitude quake struck a cluster of mountain communities east of Rome in central Italy, killing about 300 people.
– April 16, 2016 – ECUADOR – A magnitude 7.8 earthquake hammered Ecuador, killing more than 650 people on the country’s Pacific coast.
– Oct 26, 2015 – AFGHANISTAN – A magnitude 7.8 earthquake rocked the Afghan northeast, killing nearly 400 people in the country as well as in northern Pakistan.
– Apr 25, 2015 – NEPAL – A magnitude 7.8 earthquake ravaged impoverished Nepal, killing nearly 9,000 people and disrupting the lives of more than eight million.
– Aug 3, 2014 – CHINA – A magnitude 6.3 earthquake devastated southwestern China, killing at least 600 people in a remote area of Yunnan province.
– Sept 24, 2013 – PAKISTAN – Twin earthquakes, measuring 7.7 and 6.8 magnitude, rattled southwestern Balochistan province, killing at least 825 people.
– Aug 11, 2012 – IRAN – Two strong quakes, measuring 6.4 magnitude and 6.3 respectively, killed at least 300 people near the city of Tabriz in northwestern Iran.
– Oct 23, 2011 – TURKEY – A powerful magnitude 7.2 earthquake shook southeast Turkey, killing more than 600 people.
– March 11, 2011 – JAPAN – A 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami struck Japan’s northeast, killing about 15,690 people and injuring 5,700. The earthquake also triggered the world’s biggest nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in 1986.
– Feb 22, 2011 – NEW ZEALAND – A 6.3 magnitude earthquake hit Christchurch, killing at least 180 people.
– Feb 27, 2010 – CHILE – An 8.8 magnitude quake and subsequent tsunami in Chile killed more than 500 people, wrecking hundreds of thousands of homes and mangling highways and bridges.
– Jan 13, 2010 – HAITI – A 7.0 magnitude earthquake devastated Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince and killed about 316,000 people. The United Nations estimated 80,000 buildings in Port-au-Prince and surrounding areas were destroyed.
– May 12, 2008 – CHINA – A 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit Sichuan province, killing about 87,600 people.
– Dec 26, 2004 – ASIA – A 9.15 magnitude earthquake off Sumatra triggered a tsunami that barrelled into Indonesia, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka and many other countries in the region, devastating villages and tourist islands and leaving almost 230,000 dead or missing.
– Oct 8, 2005 – PAKISTAN – A 7.6 magnitude quake northeast of Islamabad killed at least 73,000 people. The quake also rocked Indian Kashmir, killing 1,244 there.
– Dec. 26, 2003 – IRAN – a 6.6 magnitude earthquake hit the southeastern Kerman province and flattened the city of Bam, killing 31,000 people.
(Editing by Edmund Blair and Bernadette Baum)
