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databeautifier OP t1_jayxv1u wrote

Reply to comment by TheOneNeartheTop in [OC] All-Time Deadliest Accidents and Disasters vs. One Year of Traffic Deaths by databeautifier

Per the source, it actually was the failure of Banqiao Dam in 1975 and includes deaths due to subsequent diseases and hunger in addition to the initial flood. I can see the perspective that it should be categorized as a flood since it did include one, but the cause was a structural collapse and I put it in the visualization as one because the source (Wikipedia) categorized it that way.

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Lente_ui t1_jb029j0 wrote

Still no where near the 4 million in the graph. The largest estimate, made by the Discovery channel, was 240,000. Including subsequent deaths by famine and disease. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1975_Banqiao_Dam_failure#Casualties
I don't think the Discovery channel's the ultimate 10 show is the most credible of sources.

I think this is the flood OP's chart is referring to: The 1931 Yangtze-Huang river floods. With an official death toll of 422,420 people. It has nothing to do with the 1975 Banqiao dam break.

>Some Western sources allege that the death toll was between 3.7 and 4 million people based on their own claims of famine and disease.[15][6]

Source [15] is a website with a tiny article. In that article it says:

>in 1931 the death toll was almost four million,

With absolutely nothing to back it up. No sources, nothing. They're just spouting out a number. I don't find this credible at all.

Source [6] refers to a book. This book is about climate. I can't find out which number it claims without buying it. I doubt a 2003 book about climate contains first hand research into a 1931 disaster. It likely quotes another source.

I'm inclined to believe the official death toll over the 70+ year after the fact 'estimates' without any substantial research behind their claims.

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