It is under the administration of Anshan City, the seat of which lies 36 kilometres (22 mi) to the northeast.

Haicheng has an area of 2,576 square kilometres (995 sq mi) and as of the 2020 census, a decreasing population of 1,067,905 inhabitants (1,232,739 in 2020).

[4] On 4 February 1975, an earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter Scale hit the city of Haicheng, which at the time had approximately 1 million residents.

Further aiding the prediction, cats and other animals are also said to have acted strangely in the days leading up to the earthquake.

There are some questions as to the validity and accuracy of these reports, which are discussed in detail in the Haicheng Earthquake Prediction link below.