On This Day in 1906: Powerful Earthquake Strikes Taiwan

Almost 120 years ago today, Taiwan was hit by the third deadliest earthquake in the country’s history. The “Great Kagi Earthquake” struck south-central Taiwan near the city of Kagi on March 17, 1906, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.  

According to reports, the 6.8 magnitude earthquake reverberated through Kagi and the Meishan Fault, which trails through the city, was the blame.

Still today, this is considered one of the world’s deadliest earthquakes. During that period, houses were built with mud bricks and weaker beams. This left thousands of homes vulnerable to destructive earthquakes and aftershocks. In fact, strong aftershocks soon followed the Great Kagi Earthquake. 

These aftershocks added to the damage and death toll. More than 1,250 people lost their lives, 2,000+ were injured, nearly 7,000+ homes decimated and greater than 10,000 damaged. The cost of damages from this earthquake is still not widely known. 

The country of Taiwan is no stranger to earthquakes. Taiwan is located on the “Ring of Fire,” an area that outlines the most active regions for earthquakes and volcanos along the rim of the Pacific Ocean. The earliest recorded earthquake in Taiwan took place in 1624, and since then there has been numerous earthquakes reported.

Another catastrophic earthquake in recent memory was the 7.7 magnitude Jiji Earthquake which struck Taiwan in 1999. This historic quake claimed the lives of more than 2,400 people, with damages racking up to more than 300 billion New Taiwan dollars, which is equivalent to about $10 billion U.S. dollars.

Source(s): earthquakes.usgs.gov, Wikipedia.org 

Story Image: Damage to the new Shinko Sub-prefectural Office following the 1906 Meishan Earthquake. (F. Omori/Wikimedia Commons)