Reviewed by USGSAlbania122y ago
M5.3 earthquake 4 km NE of Lezhë, Albania
Saturday, August 12, 1905, 21:26:29 UTC · 41.812°N, 19.689°E
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck 4 km NE of Lezhë, Albania on Saturday, August 12, 1905, 21:26:29 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.2 on August 4, 1905.
- Magnitude
- 5.3
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 15 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
2 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/9 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 3 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
325 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Eurasian and African plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
15 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 75 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 10 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.07 km SE of Stara Kresna, BulgariaApril 4, 1904 · 295 km E of this epicenter
- 6.86 km W of Stara Kresna, BulgariaApril 4, 1904 · 283 km E of this epicenter
- 6.59 km E of Stari Bar, MontenegroJune 1, 1905 · 48 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.24 km ESE of Rrëshen, AlbaniaAugust 4, 1905 · 21 km E of this epicenter
- 5.9Montenegro-Albania border regionJune 3, 1905 · 42 km NW of this epicenter
- 5.84 km NE of Makedonski Brod, North MacedoniaApril 30, 1905 · 134 km E of this epicenter
- 5.79 km E of Filiátes, GreeceApril 4, 1905 · 253 km S of this epicenter
- 5.67 km NE of Stari Bar, MontenegroJune 1, 1905 · 54 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 40 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,855 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1851M6.6
Vlore (Valona),Berat; Turkey
12 Oct 1851 · 146 km away · intensity XI
2,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1851
Berat
17 Oct 1851 · 146 km away · intensity X
400 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1905M6.6
Shkoder
1 Jun 1905 · 33 km away · intensity X
120 deaths$24 million damage
- 1786
Corfu (Kerkira)
5 Feb 1786 · 235 km away
120 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1895M6.3
Margarition-Filiates (Thesprotia)
13 May 1895 · 266 km away · intensity X
80 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1866M6.6
Narta, Vlore, Kanina
2 Jan 1866 · 158 km away · intensity X
60 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.