Reviewed by USGSWallis and Futuna60y ago
M7.0 earthquake 85 km SW of Leava, Wallis and Futuna
Thursday, January 19, 1967, 12:40:13 UTC · 14.804°S, 178.750°W
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck 85 km SW of Leava, Wallis and Futuna on Thursday, January 19, 1967, 12:40:13 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.6 on May 23, 1956.
- Magnitude
- 7.0
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 10 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- —
- No ShakeMap
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
415 kilotons of TNT
That is about 28 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 871 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
29 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Futuna and Pacific plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
10 km
Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.
Did You Feel It?
Where it was felt
No “Did You Feel It?” reports have been published for this event yet. If you felt it, you can add your report on the USGS website.
I felt it — report to USGS ↗USGS PAGER estimate
Who was exposed to shaking
USGS publishes PAGER impact estimates for significant earthquakes, usually within an hour. No PAGER estimate is available for this event.
After the main event
Aftershocks within 100 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 32 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.6144 km SSW of Leava, Wallis and FutunaMay 23, 1956 · 70 km S of this epicenter
- 6.9130 km ENE of Labasa, FijiDecember 26, 1949 · 148 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.7179 km ENE of Levuka, FijiJune 21, 1928 · 283 km S of this epicenter
- 6.7139 km S of Alo, Wallis and FutunaJanuary 1, 1922 · 95 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.584 km S of Alo, Wallis and FutunaMay 31, 1907 · 62 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.598 km NE of Labasa, FijiJuly 12, 1923 · 174 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.5Fiji regionJune 10, 1952 · 71 km S of this epicenter
- 6.5173 km ENE of Labasa, FijiFebruary 16, 1932 · 130 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 4 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1919M6.9
Rabi,Tunuloa Mission,Suvasavu
3 Oct 1919 · 222 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1884
Macuata
Jan 1884 · 275 km away · intensity VII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1956M7.5
Fiji Islands
23 May 1956 · 35 km away
- 1881
Fiji Islands
12 Jul 1881 · 275 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.