August 2, 1733 Earthquake: Dongchuan, Yunnan Province, China

August 2, 1733, Dongchuan, Yunnan Province, 26.2 N, 103.1 E, magnitude 7.5, intensity X.

In Huize, government office buildings and temples

collapsed. Most tile-roofed houses were destroyed. 90% of the battlements on the south and north city walls and 40% of those on the east and west walls were destroyed. Of the 24 houses 1.5 km east of the county town, 21 were razed. Along

the Xiaojlang River from Biguba in the south to Tangdanchang in the southwest cliffs collapsed, hills displaced, and roads along the foot of mountains were blocked up. The Yinghe River was also dammed by earth and stones. At Mushulang, landslides occurred and dammed the river for 3 days. Several houses at Xiaoying, Awang were pushed ahead 500 m or more. Field banks and paths were seriously distorted. From Ziniupo to the Willow River of Xundian, the ground fissured from south to north, 0.4-1.5 m wide and unfathomable in depth with a total length of about 100 km. Intermittent, crisscross fissures extended in the fields. (According to an investigation, garben-and horst-type earthquake remains can still be seen).

Dozens of people were killed and all survivors stayed in the open. As the earthquake occurred in daytime,

casualties were not heavy, but few workers in mines came out.

Qiaojia: All government offices were destroyed, military and civilian houses all collapsed. Cliffs collapsed. 16 people were crushed to death on narrow paths. At Chele, the ground cracked and water gushed out.

Xundian: The four city gates were destroyed in the

prefecture city.

The shock also struck Zhanyi.

After the quake, the ground frequently sounded as

thundering or roaring waves until several months

later. On the day before the shock, the sky was

murky misleading people into suspecting a coming

rain instead of an earthquake. Since then, earthquake

happened in every month until 1735.

(above from reference #3939)