Reviewed by USGSDjibouti37y ago
M4.6 earthquake 42 km NNW of Gâlâfi, Djibouti
Monday, August 21, 1989, 18:10:38 UTC · 12.072°N, 41.680°E
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck 42 km NNW of Gâlâfi, Djibouti on Monday, August 21, 1989, 18:10:38 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.3 on August 21, 1989.
- Magnitude
- 4.6
- Light · mb
- 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
120 tons of TNT
That is about 1/126 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 4 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
4 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Arabian and African 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 50 km
USGS lists 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.8 on August 22, 1989. 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 83 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 6.512 km ENE of Gâlâfi, DjiboutiAugust 20, 1989 · 44 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.417 km NNE of Gâlâfi, DjiboutiAugust 21, 1989 · 30 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.347 km ESE of Kemisē, EthiopiaSeptember 27, 1938 · 236 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.217 km NE of Dubti, EthiopiaMarch 29, 1969 · 59 km W of this epicenter
- 6.210 km WNW of Djibouti, DjiboutiMarch 11, 1961 · 158 km E of this epicenter
- 6.232 km SSW of Kemisē, EthiopiaJune 1, 1961 · 279 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.136 km ENE of Dubti, EthiopiaApril 5, 1969 · 39 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.118 km NNE of Gâlâfi, DjiboutiAugust 20, 1989 · 30 km SE 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, which together caused about 312 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1961M6.2
Karakore
1 Jun 1961 · 279 km away · intensity IX
160 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1861
Dubbi
7 May 1861 · 186 km away
106 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1969M6.2
Sardo
29 Mar 1969 · 56 km away · intensity IX
40 deathsUnder $1 million damage
- 1989M6.3
Galafi, Yabaki; Ethiopia
20 Aug 1989 · 44 km away · intensity IX
6 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1973M5.9
Djibouti
1 Apr 1973 · 154 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
- 1845
Ethiopia
12 Feb 1845 · 292 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.