The Tangshan Earthquake

November 5, 2012

AndrewNov. 7, 2012

Author’s Note

For this narrative, I interviewed by dad, Yilei. The tangshan earthquake took place during the summer of 1976. July 28. The death toll was the largest of the 20th century. The number of deaths reported by the Chinese Government was 655,500, but it has been stated to be around 240,000 to 250,000. The earthquake hit in the early morning, around 3:42 a.m. local time. The official magnitude of the earthquake was 7.2, but some sources say that it was as high as a 8.2. The earthquake was followed by a 7.1 magnitude aftershock.

Family Tree

This is my family tree going up to my grandparents on both my dad’s side and my mom’s side. I am the one

highlighted in black around the edges.

The Tangshan Earthquake“Mom! When is the food going to be ready?” I

complained.

“In a minute! If you think it’s so easy, why don’t

you come and cook for the entire family?”

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry.” We had been living in the

province of Hebei for a little more than one year, and

it was summer break. I was nine and my sister was

eleven when we moved here from Shanghai.

Unfortunately, I still haven’t gotten used to the quiet

lifestyle here. There had just been a tremor

yesterday, and everyone was preparing for another

one. I opened the door to the kitchen and was

greeted with the delicious aroma of food. “What are

you…?” At that moment, the ground started to

shake, pots and pans started rattling, and we heard

people yelling outside.

“Come on! Grab all the essentials and let’s go!

Oh, and bring the tent with you!” my dad ordered.

“Got it!” I replied while scurrying to the storage

room. I threw open the door and grabbed the tent,

all the water bottles, and some food. “Okay,” I yelled.

“I got the tent and food! Where are we going?”

“I don’t know, but it isn’t safe to stay inside! Get

outside now!” my dad commanded. We all rushed

outside, and were greeted by dust and chaos.

Everyone was running towards the camp that was

set up after the first tremor happened.

“Let’s go! If we get there fast, we can find a

livable spot to set up camp!” my mom reasoned.

“Okay! Let’s hurry!” My sister and I were faster

than our parents, so every once in a while we had to

hang back and wait for them to catch up. By the time

we reached the camp, my legs felt like jello, and

everybody was exhausted. We found a tiny,

unoccupied patch of grass, and set up camp there.

The tent was a small, but comfortable one. I helped

my dad set it up, while my sister and mom started to

bring out all the food and water. When we were

finished, the tremors had already stopped for a

while. Now that we were safe, I stood up and went to

get familiar with the people and the place where we

would be staying for the next few days. It didn’t look

like a safe haven to spend a few nights. All the tents

were small and cramped inside. You would probably

get food poisoning from the meals that people

served, and all of the water looked and tasted

contaminated.

When night came, we all squeezed into the tent,

and tried to fall asleep. But fear kept everyone from

getting any rest whatsoever. All of a sudden, the

ground started to shudder, and the sounds of people

screaming reached my ears. “Hang on! Just wait it

out. Nothing can collapse on us except this measly

tent! It’ll all be over soon.” My dad tried to comfort

us with those words, but it did little to calm us down.

I shut my eyes tightly and tried to imagine that I

was somewhere else, like in Shanghai, but the fear

kept finding a way into my imagination and ruining

my thoughts. My eyes hurt, and tears were coming

out, but I didn’t dare open them and come back to

reality. The shaking went on and on, and I couldn’t

help but think about if we where going to die here, in

this camp. After what felt like hours, the shaking

lessened into a small trembling, and then it stopped

completely. Being overwhelmed by exhaustion, sleep

took my body over.

“Hey! Yilei! Wake up! Come on, its morning!”

“Waa…?” was all I could say. My entire body felt

sore, and just standing up felt like a herculean task.

I poked my head out of the tent flap, and was blinded

by the light. “Ahhh! It’s so bright out here!”

“I know! It’s 9:00 in the morning, I think,” My

sister answered.

“Wow,” I muttered. In the distance, I could see

some houses had fallen down, and there were some

people searching through the rubble. There were

minuscule cracks in the ground, nothing to be afraid

of. Some of the tents were ripped, but not too badly,

and people were outside, looking dazed and

confused. Incredibly though, nobody seemed hurt. I

felt relieved that we had made it through the night!

Interview Q and AQ: How far away were you from the center

of the earthquake?A: 500 kilometersQ: Where were you when it hit?A: In Shijiazhuang (The capital of the Hebei

province)Q: How many people died in it?A: Around 200,000Q: Where did you go to avoid it?A: They went to a camp to hid out,Q: When did the earthquake hit? What time?

What season?A: The summer, 3:42 a.m.Q: How did it affect your life?A: It didn’t affect that much.Q: Were there other family members who were affected by this? If so, how were their lives affected?A: No, other than his mom and sister, who experienced the same things as him.Q: How old were you at the time?A: 10 years old.Q: Who was with you? A: Dad, mom, and his sister

Q: Did anyone you know die in the earthquake?

A: Can’t rememberQ: Do you have any photos from the aftermath of the event?A: NoQ: What were the immediate consequences of the event?A: We had to stay outside in the camp for several days after the earthquake.Q: How were you feeling during the event?A: I felt extremely terrified, and I thought that I was going to die.

Q: How did this event change your perspective of the world?A: He learned a lot more about nature, and how powerful it can be.

Bibliography

"1976 Tangshan Earthquake." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 11 May 2012. Web. 05 Nov. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_Tangshan_earthquake>.

"Tangshan: The Deadliest Earthquake." About.com 20th Century History. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Nov. 2012. <http://history1900s.about.com/od/horribledisasters/a/tangshan.htm>.

Reflection I thought that this assignment was a little challenging, mainly because my dad is only home on weekends, and when I call him he was usually in a meeting. I found it quite difficult to dig deep and find that one small moment. My dad didn’t really elaborate on any of the questions if I didn’t ask him, so it took me a while. I learned that my dad was a very relaxed person when he was young, and he was very dependent on his parents when he was 10. I also learned that I am really lucky that I didn’t have to go through something like that when I was 10. During the process, I think that I grew as a writer in terms of my voice, word choice, and conventions. I think that a project like this is important because you can learn a lot more about your family history, and you can discover some things that you never knew about your family members. Out of this entire project, I enjoyed the making of the family tree the most, mainly because it was the easiest of all the tasks. The part of the process that I least enjoyed was where I had to research about the earthquake. I think that I will share this with my dad after I finish it.