© Wikimedia Commons.
An aerial view of the Banqiao Dam following its failure as a result of mainland China's greatest 24-hour rainfall, which took place in Henan Province during the passage of Typhoon Nina in early August 1975. As many as 230,000 perished as a result of the dam collapse.
The storm weakened as it moved inland and merged with a cold front that straddled Henan Province (in central China), resulting in the development of a series of near-stationary thunderstorms in and around the town of Linzhuang.
The greatest short-term rainfall event in modern Chinese records ensued: some 1060 mm (41.73") of rain fell in just 24 hours. The Banqiao Dam on the Ru River near Linzhuang, failed as a result of the rains and collapsed on August 7-8, sending
a wave some 6 miles wide and 10-23 feet deep across the plains below. As a result
some 100,000-230,000 people perished. By some accounts, this makes Typhoon Nina the fourth-deadliest tropical storm in modern world history.
The wide range in fatality estimates is because
many of the deaths occurred as a result of famine and disease following the flood itself. The exact figures for each source of fatalities remains obscure. If the high-end figure of 230,000 is correct, then the event would rank as not only the fourth-deadliest tropical storm on record but perhaps the sixth-deadliest natural disaster of any kind since 1900. The caveat to these kinds of listings, however, is that when tremendous numbers like this are involved there are huge discrepancies in the range of fatalities attributed to each event (as was the case with the Banqiao Dam disaster). These discrepancies can be seen in Wikipedia's list of the
top 10 deadliest natural disasters since 1900. The list uses the highest estimate for the Banqiao Dam disaster.
Comment: Other reports over the last 4 years of certain whale species turning up where they are not usually encountered, include: