Turkey, Syria quake: A look at the major deadly earthquakes in the past two decades

Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox

People carry a victim as rescuers search for survivors under the rubble, following an earthquake, in rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria February 6, 2023. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi

People carrying a victim during a search and rescue operation, following a 7.8-magnitude earthquake, in Jandaris, Syria, on Feb 6, 2023.

PHOTO: REUTERS

Follow topic:

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 north-west 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 1.5m tsunami and killing more than 4,300 people.

Nov 12, 2017, Iran:

A 7.3-magnitude 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

7.8-magnitude earthquake hammered Ecuador,

killing more than 650 people on the country’s Pacific coast.

Oct 26, 2015, Afghanistan: A 7.8-magnitude earthquake

rocked the Afghan north-east,

killing nearly 400 people in the country as well as in northern Pakistan.

April 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 south-western 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 south-western Balochistan province, killing at least 825 people.

Aug 11, 2012, Iran: Two strong quakes, measuring magnitude 6.4 and 6.3 respectively, killed at least 300 people near the city of Tabriz in north-western Iran.

Oct 23, 2011, Turkey: A powerful magnitude 7.2 earthquake shook south-east 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 that 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 9.1-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 north-east of Islamabad killed at least 73,000 people. The quake also rocked Indian Kashmir, killing 1,244 there.

Dec 26, 200, Iran: A 6.6-magnitude earthquake hit the southeastern Kerman province and flattened the city of Bam, killing 31,000 people. REUTERS

See more on