September 9, 1571 Earthquake: Tonghai, Yunnan Province, China
A magnitude 6 earthquake struck Tonghai, Yunnan Province, China on September 9, 1571.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- September 9, 1571
- Place
- Tonghai, Yunnan Province, China
- Magnitude
- 6 (Ms)
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 24.100° N, 102.700° E
- Country
- China
The toll
- Deaths
- Some (about 51 to 100)
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million)
- Houses destroyed
- 1,000
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
September 9, 1571, Tonghai, Yunnan Province, 24.1 N, 102.7 E, magnitude 6, intensity VIII. More than 1,000 battlements, offices and civilian houses collapsed. Dozens of people were killed, Shocks continued for 7 days. An earthquake occurred at Jianshui, Quxi and Huaning
also. (reference #3939)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- January 4, 1970, Hanoi, Yunnan Province, Vietnam, China
- January 4, 1500, Yiliang, Yunnan Province, China
- 1499, Yi Liang, Yunnan Province, China
- September 6, 1833, Yunnan Province, China
- September 9, 1680, Yunnan Province, China
- February 26, 1713, S of Xundian, Yunnan Province, China
- August 27, 1799, Yunnan Province, China
- December 16, 1887, Yunnan Province, China
- November 30, 1606, Jianshui, Yunnan Province, China
- December 30, 1763, Yunnan Province, China
- December 21, 1913, Yunnan Province, China
- November 24, 1814, Siping, Yunnan Province, China
- January 8, 1725, Songming, Yiliang, Yunnan Province, China
- January 27, 1755, Yunnan Province, China
- April 6, 1940, Yunnan Province, China
More
Significant earthquakes of 1571The 1500sRecent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 759.