Reviewed by USGSIndonesia33y ago
M6.9 earthquake 66 km WSW of Kotabumi, Indonesia
Tuesday, February 15, 1994, 17:07:43 UTC · 4.967°S, 104.302°E
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 66 km WSW of Kotabumi, Indonesia on Tuesday, February 15, 1994, 17:07:43 UTC, at a depth of 23.1 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.0 on October 1, 1975.
- Magnitude
- 6.9
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 23 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- VII
- Very strong (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 100 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
338 kilotons of TNT
That is about 22 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 708 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
316 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda and Australian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
23 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 lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.6 on March 15, 1994. 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 461 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.548 km SW of Kotabumi, IndonesiaJune 24, 1933 · 44 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.3161 km S of Bengkulu, IndonesiaSeptember 25, 1931 · 228 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0164 km SSW of Pagar Alam, IndonesiaFebruary 10, 1931 · 194 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0119 km S of Bengkulu, IndonesiaOctober 1, 1975 · 233 km W of this epicenter
- 7.030 km WNW of Labuan, IndonesiaApril 1, 1943 · 204 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.061 km S of Bengkulu, IndonesiaApril 8, 1971 · 237 km W of this epicenter
- 6.850 km WSW of Labuan, IndonesiaJuly 3, 1954 · 224 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.769 km SSE of Bengkulu, IndonesiaApril 15, 1916 · 201 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 14 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 235 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1994M6.9
Southern Sumatera, Liwa, Lampung
15 Feb 1994 · 0 km away
207 deaths$170 million damage
- 1914M7.6
Sumatera
25 Jun 1914 · 299 km away
20 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1979M6.6
S Sumatera
15 Dec 1979 · 256 km away
8 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1770M7.0
Sumatra:
1770 · 255 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1986M5.0
Sumatera: S, Hahat, Muaraenim
29 Jan 1986 · 151 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1933M5.8
S Sumatera
25 Jun 1933 · 22 km away · intensity IX
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.