Human consequences
Between 225,000 and 300,000 people left homeless out of a population of about 400,000.
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EarthquakeSan Francisco earthquake
3,000Deaths
250,000Displaced / homeless
$400MEstimated cost
- Revised estimate; the official toll at the time was only 375 deaths.
- About 400 million dollars at the time.
A magnitude 7.9 earthquake ruptures the San Andreas Fault over about 470 km. The fires that follow, fed by broken gas mains, destroy nearly 80% of the city.
Consequences
Environmental consequences
Ground displacement of up to 6 m along the fault.
Economic consequences
Insurers go bankrupt; the disaster contributes to the Panic of 1907.
Political consequences
Study of the earthquake leads to the elastic rebound theory, the foundation of modern seismology.
Further reading
Similar disasters
- Mexico City earthquakeEarthquake · Mexico1985
- Messina earthquakeEarthquake · Italy1908
- Great Kantō earthquakeEarthquake · Japan1923
- Haiti earthquakeEarthquake · Haiti2010
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