1964 Baihe earthquake
Encyclopedia
The 1964 Baihe earthquake , also known as the Great Baihe earthquake, was a deadly earthquake measured at 6.3 ML
, occurred at 20:04 CST (UTC+8) on 18 January 1964 in Baihe Township of Tainan County
(now part of Tainan City), Taiwan
. The hypocenter
of the earthquake was 20 kilometers deep. The earthquake killed 106 people, destroyed 10,924 buildings, and caused a great fire in Jiayi City. It was the sixth deadliest earthquake in 20th century Taiwan, and the second deadliest post-World War II
, after the 921 earthquake
.
) area of central-southern Taiwan
. The epicentre was near the town of Baihe, in northeastern Tainan County
and at a focal depth of 20 km. It was the most serious historical quake resulting from a rupture in the Chukou Fault .
, the casualties and damage were as follows:
The cost of repairing the damage to public buildings in Tainan County alone was estimated at NT$191 million (in 1964 New Taiwan Dollars).
The effects of the quake depended on the ground on which buildings stood. On the softer ground of Baihe and Dongshan, Tainan
, concrete structures fared better than wooden ones, whereas on the harder earth of Nanxi and Yujing
the reverse was true, with concrete buildings suffering more damage.
In Jiayi City the damage from the earthquake was not so severe, however there was some damage, mainly to older, structurally weak wooden houses. The main cause of disaster in Jiayi was the fire that resulted from the quake. Aftershocks meant that residents and firefighters feared to approach the blaze to tackle it, thus letting it spread until it consumed 174 households in central Jiayi.
Richter magnitude scale
The expression Richter magnitude scale refers to a number of ways to assign a single number to quantify the energy contained in an earthquake....
, occurred at 20:04 CST (UTC+8) on 18 January 1964 in Baihe Township of Tainan County
Tainan County
Tainan County was located in southern Taiwan. The name "Tainan" means "Southern Taiwan". Formerly a county of the Republic of China , Tainan County was merged with Tainan City at the end of 2010 to form a single special municipality....
(now part of Tainan City), Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
. The hypocenter
Hypocenter
The hypocenter refers to the site of an earthquake or a nuclear explosion...
of the earthquake was 20 kilometers deep. The earthquake killed 106 people, destroyed 10,924 buildings, and caused a great fire in Jiayi City. It was the sixth deadliest earthquake in 20th century Taiwan, and the second deadliest post-World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, after the 921 earthquake
921 earthquake
The 921 earthquake , also known as Jiji earthquake , was a 7.3 Ms or 7.6 Mw earthquake which occurred at 1:47:12 am local time in Jiji , Nantou County, Taiwan. 2,415 people were killed, 11,305 injured, and NT$300 billion worth of damage was done...
.
Technical details
The earthquake struck at 20:05 on Saturday January 18, 1964, affecting the heavily populated Chiayi-Tainan plain (Chianan PlainChianan Plain
The Chianan Plain or Jianan Plain is an alluvial plain located at the central-southern region of western Taiwan. It is the largest plain of the island, and lies in Tainan City and Chiayi County/Chiayi City, from which the name of the plain derived. It also includes some portions of Yunlin County,...
) area of central-southern Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
. The epicentre was near the town of Baihe, in northeastern Tainan County
Tainan County
Tainan County was located in southern Taiwan. The name "Tainan" means "Southern Taiwan". Formerly a county of the Republic of China , Tainan County was merged with Tainan City at the end of 2010 to form a single special municipality....
and at a focal depth of 20 km. It was the most serious historical quake resulting from a rupture in the Chukou Fault .
Damage
According to Taiwan's Central Weather BureauCentral Weather Bureau
The Central Weather Bureau is the government meteorological research and forecasting institution of the Republic of China . In addition to meteorology, the Central Weather Bureau also makes astronomical observations, reports on sea conditions, and conducts research into seismology and provides...
, the casualties and damage were as follows:
- 106 dead
- 229 seriously injured
- 421 lightly injured
- 10,502 dwellings completely destroyed
- 25,818 dwellings partially destroyed
- 682 public buildings destroyed
- 764 public buildings partially destroyed
The cost of repairing the damage to public buildings in Tainan County alone was estimated at NT$191 million (in 1964 New Taiwan Dollars).
The effects of the quake depended on the ground on which buildings stood. On the softer ground of Baihe and Dongshan, Tainan
Dongshan, Tainan
Dongshan District is a rural district in Tainan City, Taiwan, Republic of China. It was formerly called Fanshe .Dongshan is famous for its coffee crop. Its tourist attractions are promoted as part of the Siraya National Scenic Area....
, concrete structures fared better than wooden ones, whereas on the harder earth of Nanxi and Yujing
Yujing, Tainan
Yujing is a rural district in eastern Tainan City, Taiwan. It is famous for its cultivation of mangoes.After a 6.4-magnitude earthquake hit southern Taiwan in March 2010, pillars were severely damaged at Yujing Junior High School forcing school officials to cancel some classes.* Area: 76.3662 km²*...
the reverse was true, with concrete buildings suffering more damage.
In Jiayi City the damage from the earthquake was not so severe, however there was some damage, mainly to older, structurally weak wooden houses. The main cause of disaster in Jiayi was the fire that resulted from the quake. Aftershocks meant that residents and firefighters feared to approach the blaze to tackle it, thus letting it spread until it consumed 174 households in central Jiayi.