M6.7 earthquake 149 km ENE of Labasa, Fiji

Monday, January 12, 1998, 16:36:20 UTC · 15.848°S, 179.376°W

A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck 149 km ENE of Labasa, Fiji on Monday, January 12, 1998, 16:36:20 UTC, at a depth of 23.4 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.6 on March 9, 1994.

Magnitude: 6.7; Strong · mwc
Depth: 23 km; Shallow
Felt reports: 0; Did You Feel It?
Est. shaking: VI; 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

169 kilotons of TNT

That is about 11 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 355 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

36 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Pacific and Australian plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.

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 8 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.6 on January 14, 1998. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 607 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 9 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 5 recorded deaths. The most severe:

1993M6.4
Futuna Island
12 Mar 1993 · 203 km away
5 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)tsunami
1919M6.9
Rabi,Tunuloa Mission,Suvasavu
3 Oct 1919 · 91 km away · intensity VIII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
1979M6.9
Fiji Islands
16 Nov 1979 · 120 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
1932M6.4
Koro,Mudu,Suvasavu
8 Mar 1932 · 277 km away · intensity VII
Moderate damage ($1–5M)
1884
Macuata
Jan 1884 · 174 km away · intensity VII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
1909M7.8
Fiji Islands
22 Feb 1909 · 243 km away

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

Nearby trackers