Table 1 Summary of selected disasters (data source fromWikipedia) for interview

Wenchuan Earthquake

The Ms. 8.0 Wenchuan earthquake of May 12, 2008- the strongest earthquake since the establishment of People’s Republic of China (PRC)- caused great life and financial losses. Tens of thousands of people lost their homes and families. According to the Ministry of Civil Affairs, as of August 25, 2008, there were 69,226 people killed, 374,643 injured, and 17,923 missing. Immediately after the disaster, the Chinese government took several positive measures, such as providing financial support from the central government and 19 local provinces for reconstruction of the destroyed areas.

Ludian earthquake

The 2014 Ludian earthquake struck Ludian County, Yunnan, China, with a moment magnitude of 6.1 on 3 August. The earthquake killed at least 617 people, injuring at least 2400 others. As of 5 August 2014, 112 people remain missing. Over 12,000 houses collapsed and 30,000 were damaged.

Ya’an earthquake

On April 20, 2013, 7.0-magnitude earthquake occurred the Lushan County in the city of Ya’an, Sichuan province of China. This earthquake resulted in 196 people dead, 24 missing and at least 11,826 injured.

Kunming station attack

In the evening of March 1, 2014, a knife attack occurred inside the Kunming Railway station in Kunming, Yunnan, China. At around 21:20, a group of 8 knife-wielding men and women attacked passengers at the city’s railway station. Both male and female attackers pulled out long-bladed knives and stabbed and slashed passengers. The incident, targeted against civilians, left 29 civilians and 4 perpetrators dead with more than 140 others injured.

Beijing flood

On Jul 21, 2012, Beijing experienced one of the heaviest rain events in the past 60 years. The heavy rainfall triggered flash flooding and landslides, which killed 79 people and caused US $2 billion in direct economic losses, destroying at least 8200 homes in the city and affecting more than 1.6 million people.

Kashgar attacks

On July 30 and 31, 2011, the Kashgar attacks were a series of knife and bomb attacks in Xinjiang province, China. This attack resulted in 23 people dead and at least 42 injured.

Sinking of Dongfang zhi Xing (Eastern Star)

Dongfang zhi xing was a river cruise ship that operated in Three gorges region of inland China. On June 1, 2015, the ship was traveling on the Yangtze River in Jianli, Hubei Province with 454 people on board when it capsized in a severe thunderstorm. On 13 June, 442 deaths were confirmed, with 12 rescued. It is the deadliest peacetime maritime disaster in China’s history.

Tianjin Explosion

A large explosion in Tianjin occurred on August 12, 2015 at approximately 23:30 and was followed by a chain of explosions that killed 173 people (eight missing) and injured more than 700. The location of the explosions was a container storage station at the port of Tianjin where there were over 40 types of hazardous chemicals being stored according to related reports. These chemical included potassium nitrate, sodium nitrate and sodium cyanide. The complex and very toxic chemicals (including cyanide materials) made these explosions much more complicated than any other common explosion with regard to the condition of the injured patients.

Yumen plague

Bubonic plague is a bacterial infection known as Black Death, a virulent epidemic that killed tens of millions of people in fourteenth century Europe. On July, 2014, tens of thousands of people were trapped in Yumen city, in the north-western province of Gansu when officials swiftly locked down the city after a man died of plague. 151 people were placed in quarantine. No further plague cases have been reported in Yumen.