Earthquakes and Volcanic Eruptions Here is information on significant earthquakes and volcanic eruptions going back as early asA.D.79 and through the present. A.D. 79 Aug. 24, Italy: eruption of Mt. Vesuvius buried cities of Pompeiiand Herculaneum, killing thousands. 856 Dec. 22, Damghan, Iran:earthquake killed 200,000. 893 March 23, Ardabil, Iran:earthquake killed about 150,000 people. 1138 Aug. 9, Aleppo, Syria:deadly earthquake claimed lives of 230,000 people. 1290 Sept., Chihli, China:earthquake killed about 100,000 people. 1556 Jan. 23, Shaanxi (Shensi) province, China:most deadly earthquake in history; 830,000 killed. 1667 Nov., Shemakha, Caucasia:earthquake killed about 80,000 people. 1693 Jan. 11, Sicily, Italy:earthquake killed about 60,000 people. 1707 Oct. 28, Japan:tsunami caused by an earthquake drowned 30,000. 1727 Nov. 18, Tabriz, Iran:about 77,000 victims killed in deadly earthquake. 1755 Nov. 1, Portugal:earthquake, fires, and Atlantic tsunami leveled Lisbon and was felt as far away as southern France and North Africa; 70,000 killed. 1782 South Sea, China:tsunami killed 40,000. 1783 Feb. 4, Calabria, Italy:series of 6 earthquakes over two-month period caused massive destruction, killing 50,000. One of first scientifically investigated earthquakes. June 8, Iceland:eruption of Laki volcano lasted until Feb. 1784. Haze from eruption resulted in loss of island's livestock and widespread crop failure; 9,350 deaths, mostly due to starvation. 1792 May 21, Kyushu Island, Japan:collapse of old lava dome during eruption of Unzen volcano caused avalanche and tsunami that killed an estimated 14,300 people. (Most were killed by the tsunami.) Japan's greatest volcano disaster. 1811 Dec. 16, Mississippi Valley, nr. New Madrid, Mo.:earthquake reversed the course of the Mississippi River. Fatalities unknown due to sparse population in area. Aftershocks and tremors continued into 1812. It has been estimated that three of the series of earthquakes had surface-wave magnitudes of 8.6, 8.4, and 8.8 on the Richter scale.It is the largest series of earthquakes known to have occurred in North America. 1815 April 5, 10–11, Netherlands Indies (Sumbawa, Indonesia):eruption of Tambora largest in historic times. An estimated 92,000 people were killed, about 10,000 directly as a result of explosions and ash fall and about 82,000 indirectly by starvation and disease. 1877 June 26, north-central Ecuador:eruption of Mt. Cotopaxi caused severe mudflows that wiped out surrounding cities and valleys; 1,000 deaths. 1883 Aug. 26–28, Netherlands Indies (Krakatau, Indonesia):eruption of Krakatau;violent explosions destroyed two-thirds of island and caused a tsunami on Java and Sumatra, killing more than 36,000. It was felt as far away as Cape Hornand possibly England. 1886 Aug. 31, Charleston, S.C.:magnitude 7.3 quake, killed 60 people and caused extensive damage. 1896 June 15, Sanriku, Japan:earthquake and tidal wave killed 27,000. 1902 May 7, St. Vincent, West Indies:Soufrière volcano erupted, devastating one-third of the island and killing some 1,680 people. May 8, Martinique, West Indies: Mt. Peléeerupted and wiped out city of St. Pierre; 40,000 dead. 1906 April 18, San Francisco:earthquake accompanied by fire razed more than 4 sq mi; estimates range from 700 to 3,000 dead or missing.For more, see The Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. 1908 Dec. 28, Messina, Sicily:city totally destroyed by earthquake. Estimated death toll, from quake and tsunami, 70,000–100,000 in Sicilyand southern Italy. 1915 Jan. 13, Avezzano, Italy:magnitude 7.5 earthquake left 29,980 dead. 1920 Dec. 16, Gansu province, China:magnitude 7.8 earthquake killed 200,000 in northwest China. 1923 Sept. 1, Japan:magnitude 7.9 earthquake destroyed one-third of Tokyo and most of Yokohama. More than 140,000 killed. 1927 May 22, nr. Xining, China:magnitude 7.9 earthquake claimed approximately 200,000 victims. 1932 Dec. 25, Gansu, China:magnitude 7.6 earthquake killed approximately 70,000. 1933 March 10, Long Beach, Calif.:117 left dead by earthquake. 1935 May 30, Pakistan:earthquake at Quettakilled 30,000–60,000. 1939 Jan. 24, Chile:earthquake razed 50,000 sq mi; about 30,000 killed. Dec. 27, northern Turkey:severe quakes destroyed city of Erzingan; about 30,000 casualties. 1948 Oct. 5, Ashgabat, Turkmenistan:magnitude 7.3 earthquake destroyed the city, killing 110,000. 1950 Aug. 15, India:earthquake affected 30,000 sq mi in Assam;1500 killed. 1960 Feb. 29, Agadir, Morocco:10,000–12,000 dead as earthquake set off tidal wave and fire, destroying most of city. May 22, Chile:strongest earthquake ever recorded (9.5 magnitude) struck near the coast, causing a tsunami that traveled as far as Hawaii, Japan, and New Zealand, killing 4,000–5,000.