page_title: 2008 Sichuan earthquake
section_title: Aftershocks
hierarchical_section_title: 2008 Sichuan earthquake / Geology / Aftershocks
caption_attribution_description: English: After the Sichuan Earthquake, residents of Chengdu worried about potential aftershocks and gathered in the street to avoid staying in buildings
context_page_description: The 2008 Sichuan earthquake, also known as the Great Sichuan earthquake or Wenchuan earthquake, occurred at 14:28:01 China Standard Time on May 12, 2008. Measuring at 8.0 Mₛ, the earthquake's epicenter was located 80 kilometres west-northwest of Chengdu, the provincial capital, with a focal depth of 19 km. The earthquake ruptured the fault for over 240 km, with surface displacements of several meters. The earthquake was also felt in nearby countries and as far away as both Beijing and Shanghai—1,500 and 1,700 km away, respectively—where office buildings swayed with the tremor. Strong aftershocks, some exceeding 6 Mₛ, continued to hit the area up to several months after the main shock, causing further casualties and damage. The earthquake also caused the largest number of geohazards ever recorded, including about 200,000 landslides and more than 800 quake lakes distributed over an area of 110,000 km².
  Over 69,000 people lost their lives in the quake, including 68,636 in Sichuan province. 374,176 were reported injured, with 18,222 listed as missing as of July 2008. The geohazards triggered by the earthquake are thought to be responsible for at least one third of the death toll.
context_section_description: Between 64 and 104 major aftershocks, ranging in magnitude from 4.0 to 6.1, were recorded within 72 hours of the main quake. According to Chinese official counts, "by 12:00 CST, November 6, 2008, there had been 42,719 total aftershocks, of which 246 ranged from 4.0 MS to 4.9 MS, 34 from 5.0 MS to 5.9 MS, and 8 from 6.0 Mₛ to 6.4 MS; the strongest aftershock measured 6.4 MS." The latest aftershock exceeding M6 occurred on August 5, 2008.
  (The Mₛ  6.1 earthquake on August 30, 2008, in southern Sichuan was not part of this series because it was caused by a different fault. See 2008 Panzhihua earthquake for details.)
caption: On the night of May 12, residents of Chengdu worried about potential aftershocks gathered in the street to avoid staying in buildings.
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