Xianshuihe-Xiaojiang Fault
Sichuan / Yunnan, China · continental transform · 9738.1 km of mapped active fault in 42 traces
background as of 7 November 2026.
consistent with baseline
| Window | the last 30.0 days |
|---|---|
| Earthquakes counted | 0 at M4.5 or above |
| Expected in that window | 0.44 |
What this system normally does
From 1995 to 2025 the catalogue holds 162 earthquakes of M4.5 or larger attributable to this system: about 5.40 a year. That figure is what "elevated" on this page is measured against.
The fault itself
| Mapped length | 9738.1 km |
|---|---|
| Traces | 42 |
| Tectonic setting | continental transform |
| Slip types | Sinistral |
| Depth attributed to it | down to 50.0 km |
| Extent | 21.27 to 32.06 latitude, 97.98 to 103.53 longitude |
Recorded history
NOAA's hazard records hold 110 significant earthquakes and 4 tsunamis attributed to this system since 814.
The deadliest was the 12 September 1850 magnitude 7.5 earthquake (China: Sichuan: Xichang), which killed 20,650 people.
The strongest earthquake on record here was magnitude 8.0, on 6 September 1833 (China: Yunnan Province).
The most recent entry is the 5 September 2022 magnitude 6.6 earthquake (China: Sichuan Province), which killed 118 people.
Across the entries that record a death toll, 61,087 people died.
| Date | What | Where | Toll |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 September 1850 | magnitude 7.5 earthquake | China: Sichuan: Xichang | 20,650 dead, damage over $25 million |
| 4 January 1970 | magnitude 7.1 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province; Vietnam: Hanoi | 15,621 dead, damage $5 to 25 million |
| 6 September 1833 | magnitude 8.0 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province | 6,700 dead, 87,620 homes destroyed, damage over $25 million |
| 6 September 1833 | tsunami | Yunnan Province | 6,700 dead, 87,620 homes destroyed, damage over $25 million |
| 8 December 1816 | magnitude 6.5 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province | 2,854 dead, 1,104 homes destroyed, damage $5 to 25 million |
| 26 February 1713 | magnitude 6.8 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province: S of Xundian | 2,100 dead, damage over $25 million |
| 16 December 1887 | magnitude 6.8 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province | 2,000 dead, damage $5 to 25 million |
| 30 November 1606 | magnitude 6.5 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province: Jianshui | 2,000 dead, damage over $25 million |
| 30 December 1763 | magnitude 6.5 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province | 1,000 dead, 4,500 homes destroyed, damage over $25 million |
| 21 December 1913 | magnitude 7.0 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province | 942 dead, damage $5 to 25 million |
| 25 May 1751 | magnitude 6.8 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province | 900 dead, 15,712 homes destroyed, damage over $25 million |
| 25 May 1948 | magnitude 7.3 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province | 800 dead, 600 homes destroyed, damage $5 to 25 million |
| 8 January 1725 | magnitude 6.0 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province: Songming, Yiliang | 614 dead, damage $5 to 25 million |
| 27 September 1811 | magnitude 6.5 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province: E. of Ganze | 480 dead, 598 homes destroyed, damage $1 to 5 million |
| 1 June 1786 | magnitude 7.5 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province: S of Kangding | 435 dead, damage $5 to 25 million |
| 30 August 1904 | magnitude 6.0 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province | 400 dead, damage $1 to 5 million |
| 3 February 1996 | magnitude 6.6 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province: Lijiang | 322 dead, 959,000 homes destroyed, $506 million damage |
| 29 August 1893 | magnitude 6.8 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province | 288 dead, damage $5 to 25 million |
| 27 January 1755 | magnitude 6.5 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province | 270 dead, 4,040 homes destroyed, damage $5 to 25 million |
| 7 September 1792 | magnitude 6.0 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province: N of Qianning | 205 dead, damage $1 to 5 million |
| 6 March 1932 | magnitude 6.0 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province | 200 dead, damage under $1 million |
| 15 May 1793 | magnitude 6.0 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province: near Qianning | 200 dead, damage $1 to 5 million |
| 24 August 1930 | magnitude 5.5 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province | 200 dead, damage under $1 million |
| 14 June 1688 | magnitude 6.3 earthquake | China: Yunnan Province | 190 dead, damage $1 to 5 million |
| 23 January 1981 | magnitude 6.8 earthquake | China: Sichuan Province | 150 dead, 2,992 homes destroyed, $5 million damage |
These are the 25 deadliest and largest of 114 entries. A dash means NOAA recorded no number, not that nobody died. Older entries are fewer because fewer were written down, not because less happened.
Recorded history: NOAA NCEI hazard databases, public domain, retrieved 2026-10-22.
Where these numbers come from
Fault geometry, length and segment counts: GEM Global Active Faults Database (GEM GAF-DB), GEM Foundation, https://github.com/GEMScienceTools/gem-global-active-faults Licence: CC-BY-SA-4.0. Figures derived from it here are offered under the same licence. Earthquake counts, magnitudes and depths: United States Geological Survey, public domain. The activity judgement is ours, computed from those two inputs, and is not a statement by either agency.