Magnitude7.3

Reviewed by USGSPhilippines43y ago

M7.3 earthquake 4 km NNW of Tabid, Philippines

Monday, March 5, 1984, 03:33:50 UTC · 8.147°N, 123.762°E

A magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck 4 km NNW of Tabid, Philippines on Monday, March 5, 1984, 03:33:50 UTC, at a depth of 649.1 km (deep). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.9 on August 16, 1976.

Magnitude
7.3
Major · mw
Depth
649 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 earthquake

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

1.3 megatons of TNT

That is about 89 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 2,818 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

365 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Philippine Sea and Sunda plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: deep

649 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 200 km

USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 200 km in the 30 days after this event.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 314 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 31 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 8,647 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1976M8.0

    Mindanao: S

    16 Aug 1976 · 209 km away · intensity VI

    8,000 deaths$134 million damagetsunami

  2. 1955M7.4

    Mindanao: Lanao,Ozamiz,Cotabato

    31 Mar 1955 · 86 km away · intensity VIII

    465 deaths$5 million damagetsunami

  3. 1928M7.4

    Cotabato,N Coast Of Illana Bay

    19 Dec 1928 · 169 km away · intensity VII

    97 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

  4. 1918M8.3

    Mindanao: Cotabato

    15 Aug 1918 · 291 km away · intensity X

    52 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami

  5. 1925M6.8

    W. Luzon Island, Philippines

    5 May 1925 · 173 km away · intensity IX

    17 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

  6. 1917M6.4

    S Mindanao: Glan,Glan Padidu,Tuyan

    31 Jan 1917 · 275 km away · intensity IX

    7 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

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