Reviewed by USGS7y ago
M4.3 earthquake in Fiji region
Sunday, May 19, 2019, 01:16:54 UTC · 20.689°S, 178.598°W
A magnitude 4.3 earthquake struck in Fiji region on Sunday, May 19, 2019, 01:16:54 UTC, at a depth of 597.2 km (deep).
- Magnitude
- 4.3
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 597 km
- Deep
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- —
- No ShakeMap
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
43 tons of TNT
That is about 1/354 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 11 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
241 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Tonga and Australian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: deep
597 km
Deep earthquakes (over 300 km) happen deep inside subducting plates. They rarely cause damage, but can be felt faintly over very large distances.
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 50 km
USGS lists 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.9 on May 27, 2019. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 1,488 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.22018 Fiji EarthquakeAugust 19, 2018 · 290 km N of this epicenter
- 7.8Fiji regionJanuary 1, 1919 · 162 km N of this epicenter
- 7.8192 km WSW of Haveluloto, TongaOctober 14, 1997 · 246 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.7Fiji regionAugust 19, 2002 · 147 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.6178 km E of Levuka, FijiFebruary 22, 1909 · 281 km N of this epicenter
- 7.6240 km E of Levuka, FijiMarch 9, 1994 · 295 km N of this epicenter
- 7.5262 km WNW of Haveluloto, TongaMay 21, 1962 · 136 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.4Fiji regionSeptember 28, 1957 · 31 km NE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 7 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 2018M8.2
Fiji Islands
19 Aug 2018 · 290 km away · intensity V
tsunami
- 1937M8.1
Fiji Islands
16 Apr 1937 · 189 km away
- 1919M7.8
Fiji Islands
1 Jan 1919 · 162 km away
tsunami
- 1997M7.7
Tonga Islands
14 Oct 1997 · 246 km away
tsunami
- 2002M7.7
Fiji Islands
19 Aug 2002 · 147 km away
- 1994M7.6
Fiji Islands
9 Mar 1994 · 295 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.