Reviewed by USGSIndonesia28y ago
M4.8 earthquake 88 km W of Pariaman, Indonesia
Monday, April 20, 1998, 00:01:56 UTC · 0.532°S, 99.331°E
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 88 km W of Pariaman, Indonesia on Monday, April 20, 1998, 00:01:56 UTC, at a depth of 63.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.8 on April 3, 1998.
- Magnitude
- 4.8
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 63 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 earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
239 tons of TNT
That is about 1/63 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 2 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
141 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and North Andes plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
63 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 205 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.726 km S of Sijunjung, IndonesiaJune 9, 1943 · 184 km E of this epicenter
- 7.6212 km W of Pariaman, IndonesiaDecember 28, 1935 · 124 km W of this epicenter
- 7.1190 km SSW of Sibolga, IndonesiaNovember 17, 1984 · 166 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.095 km W of Pariaman, IndonesiaApril 1, 1998 · 8 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0122 km W of Pariaman, IndonesiaMay 8, 1946 · 40 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.0102 km SW of Padangsidempuan, IndonesiaFebruary 4, 1971 · 144 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.9181 km SW of Sibolga, IndonesiaDecember 4, 1974 · 195 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.8209 km SW of Padang, IndonesiaDecember 24, 1974 · 200 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 21 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,439 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1861M8.5
Lagundi, Simuk, Tello I
16 Feb 1861 · 210 km away · intensity IX
1,105 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1861M7.0
Sw. Sumatra
9 Mar 1861 · 160 km away
950 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1797M8.0
Sw. Sumatra
10 Feb 1797 · 70 km away · intensity IX
300 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1995M6.8
Sumatera, Jambi Province
6 Oct 1995 · 288 km away
84 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1909M7.6
Sw Sumatra: Kerintji, Redjanglebong
3 Jun 1909 · 247 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1843M7.3
Sw. Sumatra
5 Jan 1843 · 270 km away · intensity XI
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.