10 Most Deadliest Natural Disasters of All Time.

Nature has the ability to Humble human beings. Even with huge advances in science and technology extreme weather events and tectonic shifts can prove too great for people to overcome. Though it's rare nature will occasionally unleash a terrible malady upon an unsuspecting community from ancient earthquakes to vicious cyclones. Today we will discuss about the top 10 most deadliest natural disasters of all time.

10 Most Deadliest Natural Disasters of All Time.

10. Tank Shawn Earthquake 1976.

The Tank Shawn earthqdouake struck early in the morning of July 28th 1976. Most people were asleep when the earthquake jolted them awake with a 7.6 magnitude blast. Just as devastating was the 7.1 magnitude aftershock that rocked the city only 15 hours later though scientific earthquake prediction is in its nascent stages. Nature often gives some advance warning of an impending earthquake. In a village

outside of tank Shawn's well water

reportedly grows and fell three times

the day before the earthquake. In another village gas began to spout out the water well on July 12th and eventually caught fire animals also reportedly acted, strange with forest creatures running hardly to find a hiding spot. Once the quake was over the survivors scrambled out into the open place only to see the entire

city level. After an initial period of

shock the survivors began to dig through debris to answer the muffled calls for help as well as find loved ones. Still under rubble the death toll because China had a very inexact means of calculating estimates range from two hundred and forty-two thousand people. 

9. Antioch Earthquake. 

It's roots were shaken literally and figuratively by this massive earthquake, which estimated at 7.0 magnitude with 18 months of aftershocks and 250,000 lives lost. The earthquake severely damaged the majority of buildings in Antioch

including Constantine's great octagonal church, in Domus Aurea built on an island in the Orientis River. Strangely enough with the houses that lay closest to the mountain were the only ones to survive. Most of the damage however, was a result of the fires that raged for many days in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake. One of the victims was the patriarch of Antioch, who fell into a cauldron of pitch being used by wineskin makers. The population of Antioch at that time was only 500,000. Meaning that more than half of the citizens were killed in the

terrible tragedy. Even after 1500 years later this is still one of the most devastating natural disasters of all time.

8. 1920 Haiyuan Earthquake.

December 16th 1920 haiyuan earthquake which registered a 7.8 magnitude on the Richter scale caused rivers to change course and sent landslides pouring down the

mountains. The destruction of homes and colonies beneath collapsed hills subjected the initial survivors both to the hunger and to exposure to wind storms and snowfall, that immediately followed

the quake. Vulnerable to bandit activity many thousands roamed in a deformed landscape, that was stripped of its roads and devoid of standing structures and familiar natural landmarks. After earthquake

investigations unfortunately do not make it clear what portion of total fatalities may have been due to ground shaking versus landslides or to starvation or exposure in the quakes. A subject of much debate, as if the earthquake itself wasn't enough. The following century ushered in a horrible quality of life for many of the people

who call this region home. After decades rebuilding haiwan, now it is similar to its former glory. Almost 100 years later this still stands as one of the deadliest natural disasters of the 20th century.

7. Calcutta Cyclone 1737.

The Hooghly River cyclone of 1737 is

recorded as one of the deadliest natural disasters of all time. The cyclone often referred to as the Calcutta cyclone did widespread damage to the low-lying areas

in the region. The cyclone caused a storm surge 30 to 40 feet in the Ganges with a reported 15 inches of rain falling in a six hour period. The storm tracked approximately 200 miles inland before entering the city of Calcutta. The majority of the structures which were mostly made of mud with straw roofs were destroyed with many brick structures also damaged beyond repair. in the Ganges eight out of nine boats were lost along with most of their crews and three out of four Dutch ships also went down. The total death count was 300,000 people. India's Ganges River Delta is prone to tropical cyclones additional cyclones

with death tolls reported over 10,000 people struck more than ten times over the next two centuries. These are particularly deadly because the Ganges River Delta is so densely populated.

6. India Cyclone 1839.

On November 25th 1839 a brutal cyclone slammed the bustling port city of caringa in India. In comparison with the 1737 Calcutta cyclone it was the second deadliest cyclone recorded in history. This natural disaster also resulted in 300,000 deaths. Strong winds and a 40 feet storm surge resulted in absolute destruction that went on for many weeks. Even after the initial shock citizens were unable to find clean drinking water or food and were perished of hunger and dehydration. Though the port city was hit by a similar storm once 50 years earlier, it only resulted in 20,000 deaths and the city was able to rebound. Sadly, this was not the case for the second Coringa cyclone, the community once nicknamed Hope Island was reduced to rubble and was never fully rebuilt again. Beyond the human tragedy more than 20,000 shipping vessels were destroyed. Thus, ruining the commerce and economy of the city those who survived were forced to move on to new communities and attempt to start a new life. On this day Caringa remains a sleepy fishing village tragically. The trauma of the disaster was too great to overcome for its residents.

5. Haiti Earthquake 2010.

The only fully contemporary disaster in the top 10 list, the 2010 Haiti earthquake has ongoing consequences. The island nation of 10 million people were already struggling with severe economic issues when the earthquake struck. So when the 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit the capital of port-of-prince, the country was entirely unprepared. On top of this initial shock there are more than 50 aftershocks recorded in the coming days. The government of Haiti estimated that 250,000 residences and 30,000 commercial buildings had collapsed or were severely damaged. The nation's history of national debt, prejudicial trade policies by other countries and foreign intervention International Affairs contributed to the existing poverty and poor housing conditions that increase the death toll from the disaster. Though official records have been disputed the Haitian government reported 360,000 fatalities resulting from the earthquake. Not only so many people killed, the disaster also

displaced at least 1.5 million people

who lost their permanent housing for almost 10 years. Beyond this much of the public infrastructure from hospitals to schools is still not operational. This created a much lower quality of life for the people of Haiti. The country is still accepting donations and support from the international community.

4. Bhola Cyclone 1970.

The Bhola cyclone occurred from November 8th until November 13th starting in the Bay of Bengal and moving up toward East

Pakistan. It was a category 4 cyclone in the saffir-simpson scale, which means that the average wind speed was between a 131 miles per hour and 155 miles per hour. It is considered as one of the deadliest weather-related disasters both due to natural and human causes. This particular cyclone led to a chain of events it started a civil war, created the state of Bangladesh

and created the organization Doctors Without Borders. The cyclone flooded many low-lying islands effectively drowning the residents and pummeled the coast

with relentless winds that went on for more than a week. In all 500,000 people lost their lives and the history of the region was forever changed. The bhola cyclone began with the help of a leftover tropical storm that

was breaking up in the Pacific Ocean. This contributed to a tropical depression that formed on November 8th 1970 in the Bay of Bengal. It travelled north from there towards East Pakistan and intensified by the time it reached land. The cyclone was one of the most powerful cyclones in recorded history and like the other disasters in the Ganges River Delta it struck a densely populated area. After a botched effort to receive

emergency supplies from India many died of starvation waiting for aid that had already been donated. This still stands as the deadliest cyclone in modern history.

3. Shaanxi Earthquake 1556.

Officially the deadliest earthquake in recorded history, the shanti earthquake occurred on the morning of January 23rd 1556 in Shaanxi during the Ming Dynasty. The resulting damage across a region stretching for hundreds of miles was extensive and the loss of life horrific. Although the upheaval lasted only for a few seconds, it leveled mountains teared up to 66 feet deep in the earth. It altered the path of rivers caused massive flooding, produced massive landslides and ignited fires that lasted for days. Over half of the population was killed, as every single home and building was destroyed in an upheaval that probably registered 8 on the Richter scale. An unbelievable 830,000 people lost their lives in this deadly earthquake in addition to significant loss of life reaching into the hundreds of thousands peoples. The earthquake caused significant cultural damage, the small wild goose pagoda built in 709 lost its top floor and about six feet of height. The most significant cultural loss was a collection known as the Tang stone classics, a group of 12 early Chinese classic works about 650,000 characters in length

that were engraved on a hundred and

fourteen stone tablets on the orders of the ninth century Emperor. 40 of those tablets were broken during the

earthquake.

2. Yellow River Flood 1887.

The Yellow River is the second longest river in China and due to its silt content has been prone to flooding for the entirety of human civilization. As rain began to intensify in the first weeks of September 1887 farmers and

workers began to worry. They all knew the legends of errant flooding and fatal overflow of the yellow river's banks. Those suspicions were confirmed when the river began to flood for three months owing to the low-lying plains near the area. The flood spread very quickly throughout northern China covering an estimated 50,000 square miles swapping agricultural settlements and commercial centers. After the flood two million people were left homeless. The resulting pandemic and lack of basic essentials claimed as many lives as those lost directly to the flood. In total more than 900,000 people lost their lives in this disaster making It, the second deadliest disaster in world history.

1. China Floods 1931.

This disaster bears a resemblance to the previous Yellow River floods. China is an example of a very old civilization and many of China's oldest cities are built near rivers. These rivers have flooded throughout China in consecutive history. But no year was as bad as 1931. in this year three of China's biggest rivers the yellow, Yangtze and Huai river were all flooded. Between the actual floods and the problems they created somewhere between 1 and 4 million people were killed. Even in a civilization is as ancient as China this became the worst natural disaster ever recorded. Rivers throughout the country rose onto their planes in on dating an

area about the size of England and half of Scotland combined. Around 1/10 of the Chinese population was affected either by death injury or displacement. while the scale of this disaster was exceptional, devastating floods and droughts had become increasingly common in China since the 19th century. Political instability, economic turmoil and incessant warfare had left the population vulnerable to environmental hazards. In most cases rural communities for the brunt of these disasters but the 1931 flood was so extensive that cities also suffered over the past century.

China has rebuilt along these floodplains preparing for the next major natural disaster.