Myanmar is one of the most seismically active regions in the world. Oblique subduction, block rotation, and a transform margin has been responsible for the seismic activities of the country. The Sagaing Fault is one of the largest sources of earthquakes in the country, having produced deadly quakes in the past centuries. Along the western coast, offshore Rahkine State, the Sunda Megathrust, where the Indian plate dives beneath the Burma plate is capable of producing large events and tsunamis like the 2004 earthquake. Intermediate depth earthquakes east of the Chin Range also pose a risk to people. The Shan Plateau is another source of earthquakes, hosting many active strike-slip faults that accommodate block rotation of the Sunda plate. [1]
Notable earthquakes in the history of Myanmar include the following:
Date | Location | Mag. | MMI | Depth (km) | Deaths | Injuries | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2023-06-07 | Ma-ubin | 4.8 mb | VII | 10.0 | 3 | Several buildings and a pagoda damaged in Ma-ubin. | [2] | |
2022-07-21 | Keng Tung | 5.9 Mww | VII | 5.0 | Damage in Keng Tung. Also felt in China, Thailand, and Laos. | [3] | ||
2021-11-26 | Hakha | 6.2 Mww | VIII | 42.5 | 1 | Minor damage also occurred in Bangladesh. | [4] | |
2018-01-11 | Bago | 6.0 Mww | VII | 9.0 | Felt strongly in many places. | [5] | ||
2017-03-13 | Yangon | 5.1 mb | VI | 10.0 | 2 | 36 | [6] | |
2016-08-24 | Magway | 6.8 Mw | VI | 84.1 | 4 | 20 | Several temples were damaged | |
2016-04-13 | Sagaing | 6.9 Mw | VI | 134.8 | 2 | 120 | ||
2016-01-04 | Imphal | 6.7 Mww | VIII | 55.0 | 11 | 200+ | ||
2014-05-23 | Kachin | 5.6 Mw | VII | 8.0 | 15 | |||
2012-11-11 | Sagaing | 6.8 Mw | VIII | 9.8 | 26 | Many | 12 missing | |
2011-03-24 | Shan | 6.9 Mw | IX | 12.8 | 151 | 212 | ||
2011-03-10 | Kachin | 5.4 Mw | VII | 10.0 | 26 | 313 | ||
2011-02-04 | Monywa | 6.4 Mw | VI | 85.0 | 1 | [7] | ||
2009-08-11 | Coco Islands | 7.5 Mw | VII | 24.0 | ||||
2008-08-21 | Kachin | 6.0 Mw | VII | 10.0 | 5 | 130 | ||
2007-12-25 | Kachin | 4.8 Mw | IV | 35.0 | 19 | Severe damage | [8] | |
2004-12-26 | Coco Islands | 9.1–9.3 Mw | - | 30.0 | 70–800 | Rupture extended to the Coco Islands | ||
2003-09-21 | Magway | 6.6 Mwb | VII | 15.8 | 10 | 43 | Damage at Taungdwingyi | |
1997-11-21 | Chittagong | 6.1 Mw | VI | 54.4 | 23 | 200 | ||
1995-07-11 | Shan | 6.8 Mw | VIII | 12.5 | 11 | [9] | ||
1991-01-05 | Sagaing | 7.0 Mw | VII | 19.7 | 2 | [10] | ||
1988-11-06 | Shan | 7.2 Ms | X | 15.9 | Aftershock of the Lancang earthquake. | |||
1988-11-06 | Shan | 7.7 Mw | IX | 17.8 | 730–938 | 3,900 | [11] | |
1988-08-06 | Sagaing | 7.3 Mw | VIII | 98.1 | 3 | 30 | Caused some damage in India and was felt in the Soviet Union. At least 30 injured or missing in Bangladesh. | [12] |
1976-05-29 | Yunnan | 7.0 Mw | 10.0 | 98 | 2,400+ | |||
1975-07-08 | Mandalay | 7.0 Mw | VIII | 106.8 | 2 | 15 | ||
1970-07-29 | Sagaing | 7.0 Mw | 76.1 | Damage at Assam. | [13] | |||
1956-07-16 | Sagaing | 7.1 Mw | VIII | 34.3 | 38 | |||
1954-03-21 | Sagaing | 7.4 mb | 180.0 | Some damage reported in India. | [14] | |||
1952-06-19 | Shan | 6.7 Mw | VIII | 10.0 | Homes collapsed and landslides occurred in Yunnan. | [15] | ||
1950-08-15 | Assam | 8.6 Mw | XI | 15.0 | 4,800 | Rupture partially extended to Burma and was felt strongly | [16] | |
1946-09-12 | Sagaing | 7.8 Mw | 15.0 | 0 | Doublet earthquake | |||
1946-09-12 | Sagaing | 8.0 Mw | 15.0 | 0 | ||||
1943-10-23 | Chin | 7.2 | [17] | |||||
1941-12-26 | Shan | 7.2 Mw | 10.0 | >6 | [18] | |||
1938-08-16 | Chin | 7.2 Ms | 75.0 | [19] | ||||
1932-08-14 | Sagaing | 7.0 Ms | 110.0 | Damage at Assam | [20] | |||
1931-01-27 | Kachin | 7.6 Mw | IX | 15.0 | 0 | |||
1930-12-03 | Bago | 7.3 Mw | X | 10.0 | 36 | |||
1930-07-18 | Irrawaddy | 50 | [21] [22] | |||||
1930-05-05 | Bago | 7.5 Mw | X | 35.0 | 558+ | 204+ | Tsunami | |
1929-08-08 | Naypyidaw | 6.6–7.1 Mw | 10.0–15.0 | Caused some damage. | [23] | |||
1929-01-19 | Kachin | 5.5 Ms | IX | Damage at Htawgaw. | [24] | |||
1927-12-17 | Yangon | ~7.0 Mw | Severe damage in northern Yangon | [25] | ||||
1923-06-22 | Shan | 7.2 Mw | 25.0 | [26] | ||||
1922-05-02 | Shan | 6.7 Mw | 35.0 | [27] | ||||
1917-07-05 | Bago | Shwemawdaw Pagoda fell. | ||||||
1912-05-23 | Shan | 7.8Mw | IX | 15–25.0 | 1(?) | Several cities damaged | [28] | |
1908-12-12 | Kachin | 7.2 Mw | 15.0 | [29] [30] | ||||
1908-12-12 | Kachin | 7.2 Mw | 15.0 | [31] | ||||
1906-08 | Northern Sagaing Fault | 7.0 Mw | [32] [33] | |||||
1906-06-24 | Coco Islands | 7.3 Muk [1] | 60.0 km | 0 | [1] [34] | |||
1895/1896 | Yangon | Destroyed many buildings in Rangoon. | ||||||
1858-08-24 | Magway | 7.7 Mw | ? | An island disappeared. | [35] [36] [37] [1] | |||
1843-10-30 | Rahkine | May have triggered a tsunami. | [37] | |||||
1842-11-11 | Rahkine | Tsunami recorded at Cheduba Island. | [37] | |||||
1848-01-03 | Rahkine | 6.8–7.2 Mw | ? | Severe shaking at Ramree Island. | [38] [39] | |||
1839-03-23 | Mandalay | 8.1–8.2 Mw | XI | 12-15.0 | 500+ | Former capital city Inwa destroyed and abandoned. | ||
1762-04-02 | Chittagong-Rahkine | 8.8 Mw | XI | 200+ | Tsunami | |||
1757-06-04 | Bago | [25] | ||||||
1750 | Rahkine | [40] | ||||||
1714-08-04 | Sagaing | Waves from a river flooded a nearby city. | [41] | |||||
1620-06-06 | Mandalay | Fishes in the Irrawaddy River were killed. | [25] | |||||
1564-09-13 | Bago | Mahazedi Pagoda destroyed. | [25] | |||||
1485-07-24 | Sagaing | Several pagodas fell. | [25] | |||||
1467 | Innwa | [42] | ||||||
1429 | Innwa | [42] | ||||||
Note: Only damaging, injurious, or deadly events should be recorded. |
Earthquakes are caused by movements within the Earth's crust and uppermost mantle. They range from weak events detectable only by seismometers, to sudden and violent events lasting many minutes which have caused some of the greatest disasters in human history. Below, earthquakes are listed by period, region or country, year, magnitude, cost, fatalities, and number of scientific studies.
This list of 20th-century earthquakes is a list of earthquakes of magnitude 6 and above that occurred in the 20th century. Sone smaller events which nevertheless had a significant impact are also included. After 1900 most earthquakes have some degree of instrumental records and this means that the locations and magnitudes are more reliable than for earlier events.
The 1941 Andaman Islands earthquake struck the Andaman Islands on June 26 with a magnitude of 7.7 to 8.1. Details of this event are poorly known as much of Southeast Asia was in the turmoil of World War II. The quake caused severe damage in the Andaman Islands. The tsunami it triggered was reported along the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India and British Ceylon. There may have been damage and deaths in Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Thailand due to the tsunami.
The 1975 Hawaii earthquake occurred on November 29 with a moment magnitude of 7.7 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe). The shock affected several of the Hawaiian Islands and resulted in the deaths of two people and up to 28 injured. Significant damage occurred in the southern part of the Big Island totalling $4–4.1 million, and it also triggered a small brief eruption of Kilauea volcano.
The 1918 Celebes Sea earthquake occurred on August 15 at 12:18 UTC near the Moro Gulf coast of Mindanao. It had a magnitude of 8.3 on the moment magnitude scale and a maximum perceived intensity of X (Extreme) on the Mercalli intensity scale. It triggered a tsunami of up to 7 m in height and the combined effects of the earthquake and tsunami led to the deaths of 52 people.
The 1976 Sabah earthquake occurred at 10:56 am on 26 July near Lahad Datu in the eastern portion of Sabah, Malaysia. The moment magnitude 6.3 earthquake is one of the strongest in Malaysia to be recorded by seismic instruments. It had a focal mechanism corresponding to strike-slip faulting. While slightly larger than the 2015 Sabah earthquake, the 1976 event caused less extensive damage, in the form of cracks on several buildings and ground cracks.
The 1974 Lesser Antilles earthquake occurred at 05:50:58 local time on October 8 with a moment magnitude of 6.9 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe). Four people were injured in what the United States' National Geophysical Data Center called a moderately destructive event.
The 1998 Aiquile earthquake occurred on May 22 at 00:48:53 local time in Bolivia. This strike-slip earthquake had a moment magnitude of 6.6 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe). Damage was severe, with at least 95 deaths, 50–150 injuries, and 6,900 homeless.
During April 1819, the area around Copiapó in northern Chile was struck by a sequence of earthquakes over a period of several days. The largest of these earthquakes occurred on 11 April at about 15:00 local time, with an estimated magnitude of Mw 8.5. The other two events, on 3 April between 08:00 and 09:00 local time and on 4 April at 16:00 local time, are interpreted as foreshocks to the mainshock on 11 April. The mainshock triggered a tsunami that affected 800 km of coastline and was also recorded at Hawaii. The city of Copiapó was devastated.
On 29 November, at 14:10 UTC, a magnitude 7.7 Mw earthquake struck off the southern coast of Taliabu Island Regency in North Maluku, Indonesia. At least 41 people were killed on the nearby islands and a tsunami was triggered. Several hundred homes, buildings and offices were damaged or destroyed.
The 1979 Yapen earthquake occurred on September 12 at 05:17:51 UTC. It had an epicenter near the coast of Yapen Island in Irian Jaya, Indonesia. Measuring 7.5 on the moment magnitude scale and having a depth of 20 km (12 mi), it caused severe damage on the island. At least 115 were killed due to shaking and a moderate tsunami.
The 1941 Hyūga-nada earthquake occurred off the coast of Kyushu, Japan at 19:02 local time on November 19. The earthquake measured 8.0 Mw and had a depth of 35 km (22 mi). A JMA seismic intensity of 5 was observed in Miyazaki City and Nobeoka City in Miyazaki Prefecture, and Hitoyoshi City in Kumamoto Prefecture. Due to the earthquake, a tsunami with a maximum wave height of 1.2 m was observed in Kyushu and Shikoku. The tsunami washed away many ships. Twenty-seven homes were destroyed and two people were killed. In Miyazaki, Ōita and Kagoshima prefectures, telephone services were disrupted. Subsidence by 8 cm (3.1 in) was recorded at Hyūga, Miyazaki. At Nobeoka, stone walls and embankments were damaged while roads cracked. It was felt as far as central Honshu.
{{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite journal}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Sources