Tangshan Earthquake Research Paper

This region in China has a long history as a thriving city prior to the Tangshan Earthquake in 1976. Humans lived and worked in Tangshan as early as 40,000 years ago. It was a village during the Tang dynasty. After this dynasty, it was part of the Ming dynasty. During the Ming dynasty, Tangshan developed in agriculture, oil exportation, and ceramics. In 1889, this region was named Tangshan Town and later, it became known as the City of Tangshan. It is home to many "first" innovations in China's industrial industries. It includes mechanical mining, railroad track gauge, train locomotive, machinate-made cement, and sanitary porcelain. In 1907, a large cement plant opened, followed by a coal production plant in the 1940's.

Just before
the earthquake, Tangshan had very hot weather and odd things began happening. It included animals staying inside and refusing to eat. People saw rodents and other animals running around the city freely. Well water levels rose and fell three times a day. It was reported that loud roaring noises and light flashes were happened within the city. Airport workers said the sounds to be louder than airplanes. "As I walked home, I passed a fish pond and noticed the fish jumping up out of the water, indicating that the ground temperature had risen very high." (Source 7)

The Tangshan Earthquake, also known as the Great Tangshan Earthquake, happened in Tangshan in Hebei, China.
This earthquake happened along the 25 mile long, Tangshan fault line. This fault line was not discovered until this earthquake occurred. When the earth shifted it caused the Amirian plate to slide past the Eurasian plate. This region is located at Yan Shan fold fault zone and the Cangdong fault zone. China is located between the Indian and Pacific plates, which is an active earthquake region. The fault is part of the Cangdong fault system which crosses Yin Shan mountain
range.

At 3:42 A.M. on July 28, 1976 the ground began shaking. "I was stacked awake by the light, shock my wife awake and spent a long time looking for my slippers. It is my custom to put my slippers on when I got out of bed." (Source 7) With an magnitude of 7.5 on the Richter scale, it was one of the deadliest earthquakes in history. It caused extreme damage to the buildings because the buildings were not built to withstand earthquakes. Residents were not prepared for an earthquake because they did not know they lived on top of a fault line.

The main quake lasted for about twenty-three seconds. Survivors from this main quake were left with no water, food, or electricity. They searched for resources and followed emergency procedures with little supplies. Since Tangshan is located on unstable alluvial soil, ninety percent of Tangshan's buildings were leveled. Ninety-five percent of the city's homes and seventy-eight percent of commercial buildings were destroyed. The electric power systems, water supply, sewer systems, telephones, and radio communications all failed. Highways and railroads were destroyed making rescuers unable to help. All of Tangshan's coal mines were destroyed; there were 2,200 coal miners that were underground when the quake struck.

On that same day, an aftershock of 7.1 on the Richer scale occurred in the city of Luanxian, forty-three miles northeast of Tangshan.
The aftershock caused additional damage and casualties and limited the efforts of rescue workers. The Chinese government refused any foreign aid so Tangshan was a disaster. "A foreigner passed through Tangshan a year after the earthquake and described the destruction similar to the worst pictures of bombing during World War II." (Source 7)

The earthquake also affected the economy and population in Tangshan. The quake left 160,000 families homeless, 4,000 children orphaned, 242,000 people dead and possibly 700,000 people injured. Approximately, 165,000 of those hurt had major injuries. Eighty percent of the people who were stuck under the rubble were
saved

This was the largest earthquake death toll in modern history and the second or third deadliest of all time. The cost of the earthquake was about 5.6 billon dollars to rebuild the city. It look Tangshan ten years to rebuild. An eighteen square area was completed by 1986. It wasn't until the 1980's when Tangshan regained its production levels. Tangshan was recognized by the United Nations for improving living conditions with the Habitual Scroll of Honor. In addition, Tangshan received the Dubai International Award. It recognizes the improved standard of living and eco-friendly efforts. Tangshan is knows for its beautiful forests in the north and sparkling seas in the south. All buildings are now earthquake resistant. New families have moved to Tangshan which has helped the economic growth. It is also now a center of chemical and energy resources. The city has made agriculture practices standard so it is as good for the environment. Land along the fault lines has been the made into parks. Today, the city has as population of 7.25 million people and has become industrialized. Tangshan makes steel products as well as salt, ceramic, chemical machinery, and textiles. It is known as the "Brave City of China."