M5.4 earthquake 47 km NW of Sinabang, Indonesia

Monday, March 28, 2005, 18:48:53 UTC · 2.751°N, 96.049°E

A magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck 47 km NW of Sinabang, Indonesia on Monday, March 28, 2005, 18:48:53 UTC, at a depth of 30.0 km (shallow). USGS received 4 “Did You Feel It?” reports, with a maximum reported intensity of V (moderate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.1 on March 28, 2005.

Magnitude: 5.4; Moderate · mb
Depth: 30 km; Shallow
Felt reports: 4; Max intensity V
Est. shaking: —; No ShakeMap
PAGER alert: None; Not issued
Tsunami: No flag; USGS feed

Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search area

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

2 kilotons of TNT

That is about 1/8 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 4 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

41 km

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

Depth: shallow

30 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

Reports sent by people to USGS, grouped by place (most reports first). Intensity uses the Modified Mercalli scale (I–X): what people felt, not the magnitude.

Place	Intensity	Reports	Distance
Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia	V · Moderate	1	631 km
Alor Setar, Kedah, Malaysia	IV · Light	1	607 km
Kuala Selangor, Selangor, Malaysia	III · Weak	1	582 km
Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia	III · Weak	1	614 km

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 75 km

USGS lists 135 M2.5+ earthquakes within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.9 on March 29, 2005. 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 354 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 18 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 231,427 recorded deaths. The most severe:

2004M9.1
Sumatra: Aceh: Off West Coast
26 Dec 2004 · 61 km away
227,899 deaths$10 billion damagetsunami
1907M8.2
Nw Sumatra: Gunungsitoli, Barus
4 Jan 1907 · 58 km away
2,188 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
2005M8.6
Sumatera: Sw
28 Mar 2005 · 139 km away
1,319 deaths$37 million damagetsunami
1936
N Sumatera: Tapanuli, Karo
9 Sep 1936 · 181 km away · intensity VIII
17 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
2002M7.3
Sumatera: Simeulue
2 Nov 2002 · 9 km away
3 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
1990M6.8
N Sumatera, Blangkejeren, Kutacane
15 Nov 1990 · 202 km away
1 death$2 million damage

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

Nearby trackers