Skip to main content
Opens in a new tab External site
Aon Impact Forecasting Update on China Earthquake
Chicago
NYSE: AOC

CHICAGO, May 12, 2008 - Impact Forecasting, LLC, a unit of Aon Corporation (NYSE: AOC), released the following update regarding today's earthquake in China. For more information, or to subscribe to Impact Forecasting's weekly "Cat Alerts" and get breaking news about global meteorological events, visit http://aon.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=63&item=225.

A major earthquake rocked central China on Monday afternoon local time. The Chinese government fears that up to 5,000 people may have been killed with an additional 10,000 injured in Beichun County alone. The situation has been labeled a 'major disaster' by Prime Minister Wen Jiabao.
The quake registered as a magnitude 7.8 on the Richter Scale and was centered about 55 miles (90 kilometers) west-northwest of Chengdu in Sichuan province, according to the United States Geological Survey. The quake occurred at 2:28 pm Monday afternoon local time and was centered around ten kilometers from the earth’s surface. At least eleven aftershocks have occurred in the region since the main tremor, ranging from magnitude 4.9 to 6.0.
According to local media, there have been massive casualties and significant damage in Beichun County. Officials at the Sichuan provincial disaster relief headquarters estimate that 80 percent of all buildings collapsed in the county. Many schools also received damage, with a report of at least 900 children currently trapped in the debris. The official Chinese Xinhua News Agency reports that 3,000 to 5,000 are feared dead in Beichun, but the death toll could rise quickly as the county is home to 160,000 residents. More than 5,000 soldiers and 3,000 police officers have been sent to help in search and rescue efforts.
The quake was felt throughout all of China, with thousands of people running into the streets in Beijing (which is located 960 miles (1545 kilometers) away from the epicenter.) The countries of Pakistan, Vietnam and Thailand also reported that they felt the tremor.
The last major earthquake to strike China came in 2003, when a magnitude 6.8 quake killed 268 people in Bachu County located to the west of Xinjiang.
Media Contact: Rahsaan Johnson, 312.381.2684, Rahsaan_Johnson@aon.com

Media Resources

Access international media contacts, the full library of Aon media releases, and a media kit with fact sheet and executive bios, via links below.

Media Contacts
Media Releases
Media Kit
Featured Updates