1996 Baotou earthquake

1996 Baotou earthquake

UTC time	1996-05-03 03:32:47
ISC event	962141
USGS-ANSS	ComCat
Local date	May 3, 1996 (1996-05-03)
Local time	11:32:47 CST
Magnitude	Ms 6.4
Depth	26 km
Epicenter	40.774°N 109.661°E / 40.774; 109.661
Casualties	26 dead

The 1996 Baotou earthquake (Chinese: 1996年包头地震) occurred on May 3, 1996, at 11:32 local time (03:32 UTC). The epicenter was located near Baotou, Inner Mongolia, China. It had a magnitude of M_s 6.4. The earthquake killed 26 people, injured 453, and left 196,633 homeless.

The earthquake was located close to the western suburbs of Baotou, and it was considered a typical urban earthquake. A landslide in Hademen Gold Mine (哈德门金矿) caused six deaths. There was damage to electricity infrastructure.^[1] Liquefaction was reported in the low swamps along both sides of the Yellow River. Anomalies in gas radon and water mercury were observed before the earthquake. However, many of the anomalies were observed in Linhe, Baynnur, but the earthquake occurred near western Baotou.^[2] Besides in Inner Mongolia, the earthquake could be felt in Beijing, Shaanxi, and Shanxi of China as well as in Mongolia.^[3] There was a large historical earthquake in 849 around the Hetao region, and some researchers located it in eastern Baotou.^[4]

The earthquake, which destroyed many old houses, led to the reconstruction of Baotou. In 2002, the Baotou Municipal Government was awarded by UN-HABITAT for the improvements in shelter and the urban environments.^[5][6]

References

1. "电力系统的地震灾害研究现状与应急响应" by 谢强
2. "国家地震科学数据共享中心". China Earthquake Networks Center. Archived from the original on 18 April 2015. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
3. "Significant Earthquakes of the World". Archived from the original on 2010-09-01. Retrieved 2010-09-01.
4. "公元849年内蒙古包头东地震地表破裂带及地震参数讨论" by 聂宗笙, 吴卫民, and 马保起
5. "Un-Habitat.:. 迪拜奖 | 包头市的震后重建、经济适用房和城市绿化项目". Archived from the original on 2012-07-09. Retrieved 2012-04-24.
6. http://ww2.unhabitat.org/whd/2002/documents/whd_pressrelease_2.doc^{[permanent dead link‍]}

Further reading

• Guo, Liang-Qian; Bo, Wan-ju; Hu, Xin-Kang; Wang, Min (2002), "Characteristics of crustal strain associated with M=6.4 Baotou earthquake in 1996", Acta Seismologica Sinica, 15 (4): 363–373, Bibcode:2002AcSSn..15..363G, doi:10.1007/s11589-002-0029-7, S2CID 189951607

External links

• The International Seismological Centre has a bibliography and/or authoritative data for this event.