Why was the earthquake in China in 1556 considered the greatest natural disaster in history?
Do you know what an earthquake feels like? The ground rumbles and trembles, hanging lamps begin to sway back and forth, shelves begin to rattle or spill their contents, and the floor and walls shake! But the earthquake in 1556 in the Shensi Province of China, which killed about 8,00,000 people, was one of the greatest natural disasters in history. The earthquake happened at night. Thousands of people died, and fires raged through the ruins. Many people in Shensi lived in caves that were hollowed out of the soft cliffs. The cliffs caved in, burying them, while landslides and floods carried away thousands of others. The destruction spanned an area of 800 kms, and in some provinces, the average death toll was 60 percent of the population.