The earthquake that killed 25,000 people in Armenia pushed last year's earthquake-related death toll worldwide to the highest level since 1976, when a Chinese earthquake killed at least 10 times as many, the U.S. Geological Survey reports. The estimated earthquake death toll in 1988 includes an additional 2,000 or more people who died in other earthquakes around the world, the Survey reported Monday. Although the annual average death toll for earthquakes is about 10,000, in 1987 only 1,100 lives were lost. In addition to the deaths, some 13,000 people were injured and more than a half-million were left homeless in the Armenian earthquake, which had a magnitude of 6.8 on the Richter scale. The death toll of 25,000 is the most recent reported by the Soviets. The exact toll in unknown. The main shock was followed within minutes by a second, measuring 5.8 on the Richter scale, which estimates the energy released by an earthquake. An earthquake of 5.0 can cause considerable damage, and the strength rises by 10 times for each whole number on the scale. Many of the deaths in Armenia were blamed on collapsing buildings, as the earthquake rattled concrete structures until they fell to the ground, according to subsequent analyses. Another recent earthquake in the Soviet Union, claiming about 1,000 lives, struck in Soviet central Asia. That one occurred in January, however, and so does not count in the 1988 toll. Last year's second most deadly earthquake occurred Aug. 20 on the Nepal-India border, killing 1,000. That earthquake, measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale, destroyed thousands of homes and injured many people. On Nov. 6 an earthquake measuring 7.3 on the scale claimed 730 lives and injured about 4,000 people on the border between Burma and China, the Geological Survey reported. And on the India-Burma border three deaths were reported in an Aug. 6 earthquake that caused landslides. The Survey said it recorded 61 significant earthquakes last year, 15 fewer than the year before. An earthquake is considered significant if it has a magnitude of 6.5 on the Richter scale. Earthquakes of lesser magnitude are included if they cause casualties or considerable damage. Three significant earthquakes were recorded in the United States last year, including the strongest shock of the year. That earthquake, measured at 7.6, occurred March 6 in the Gulf of Alaska and resulted in only minor damage. The only U.S. earthquake death last year occured when someone suffered a heart attack after an earthquake measuring 4.8 in Whittier, Calif., in February. The other significant U.S. earthquake occurred Dec. 3 in Pasadena, Calif. It was measured at 4.6 on the scale and caused some injuries and property damage. An earthquake centered in eastern Canada on Nov. 25 was felt widely across that country and in the northeastern United States as far south as Washington, the Survey reported. It had a magnitude of 5.7. Earthquakes in the eastern part of North America tend to be felt over larger areas than earthquakes of similar strength in the West. Europe recorded three earthquake deaths last year when one rated at 3.0 killed a group of miners in Czechoslovakia on Sept. 2. In addition an earthquake rated at 5.8 caused several injuries in Albania on Jan. 9. Injuries were also reported from two offshore earthquakes, one in the Ionian Sea near Greece Oct. 16 and another near the Azores Islands Nov. 21. In Africa, eight people working in a gold mine in South Africa died Jan. 5 in an earthquake rated at 5.2. And Japan, usually very seismically active, recorded only one significant earthquake last year, the Survey reported. That earthquake measured 5.4 and resulted in 10 injuries and minor damage in the Tokyo area.
The earthquake that killed 25,000 in Armenia last December was the largest contributor to the 1998 worldwide death toll, the largest since 1976 and one of the deadliest natural disasters on record. The year's second deadliest earthquake occurred along the Nepal-India border on August 20. It claimed 1,000 victims. Another Asian earthquake, this along the Burma-China border on November 6 left 730 dead. Only three were killed on August 6 in a quake on the India-Burma border. A Tokyo area quake that killed ten was Japans' only significant quake in 1988.