Earthquakes in1968

class=notpageimage| Approximate epicenters of the earthquakes in 1968 4.0–5.9 magnitude 6.0–6.9 magnitude 7.0–7.9 magnitude 8.0+ magnitude
Strongest magnitude	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu (Magnitude 8.2) May 16
Deadliest	Iran,South Khorasan province (Magnitude 7.1) August 31 10,488 deaths
Total fatalities	12,081
Number by magnitude
9.0+	0
← 1967 1969 →

This is a list ofearthquakes in 1968. Only magnitude 6.0 or greaterearthquakes appear on the list. Lower magnitude events are included if they have caused death, injury or damage. Events which occurred in remote areas will be excluded from the list as they wouldn't have generated significant media interest. All dates are listed according toUTC time. Maximum intensities are indicated on theMercalli intensity scale and are sourced fromUnited States Geological Survey (USGS)ShakeMap data. There was a large resurgence in activity in 1968. 22 magnitude 7.0+ earthquakes struck various parts of the planet. The largest of these was a magnitude 8.2 event inJapan in May. Large aftershocks struck the area following the mainshock.New Zealand andIndonesia had some upheaval during the year. The high activity contributed to over 12,000 deaths across the world. The vast majority of this total was caused by a destructive event inIran in August with nearly 10,500 deaths. Events in thePhilippines,Italy andIndonesia also had significant fatalities.

Rank	Death toll	Magnitude	Location	MMI	Depth (km)	Date
1	10,488	7.1	Iran,South Khorasan province	IX (Violent)	10.0	August 31
2	700	6.2	Iran,Razavi Khorasan province	VIII (Severe)	15.0	September 1
3	270	7.6	Philippines,Luzon	IX (Violent)	25.0	August 1
4	216	6.4	Italy,Sicily	X (Extreme)	10.0	January 15
5	200	7.2	Indonesia,Minahassa Peninsula	IX (Violent)	20.0	August 14
6	52	8.2	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu	VIII (Severe)	29.9	May 16
7	38	5.3	Iran,West Azerbaijan province	VII (Very strong)	34.0	April 29
8	24	6.3	Turkey, offshoreBartin Province	VII (Very strong)	20.0	September 3
= 9	20	7.2	Greece,Aegean Sea	X (Extreme)	15.0	February 19
= 9	20	6.0	Mexico,Chiapas	IV (Light)	124.8	September 25
10	18	7.3	Mexico,Oaxaca	VIII (Severe)	25.0	August 2
11	15	6.8	Peru,Loreto Region	VII (Very strong)	15.0	June 19

• Note: At least 10 casualties

Rank	Magnitude	Death toll	Location	MMI	Depth (km)	Date
1	8.2	52	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu	VIII (Severe)	29.9	May 16
2	7.9	0	Japan, off the northeast coast ofHonshu	VII (Very strong)	25.0	May 16
= 3	7.6	270	Philippines,Luzon	IX (Violent)	25.0	August 1
= 3	7.6	0	Indonesia,Molucca Sea	IX (Violent)	23.0	August 10
= 4	7.5	1	Japan, off the east coast ofKyushu	VIII (Severe)	34.2	April 1
= 4	7.5	0	Indonesia,Papua (province)	VIII (Severe)	45.0	May 28
5	7.4	0	Soviet Union,Kuril Islands,Russia	VII (Very strong)	36.9	January 29
= 6	7.3	0	Australia, southeast ofNew Ireland (island),Papua and New Guinea	VIII (Severe)	30.0	February 12
= 6	7.3	0	New Zealand,Kermadec Islands	VI (Strong)	45.0	July 25
= 6	7.3	18	Mexico,Oaxaca	VIII (Severe)	25.0	August 2
= 6	7.3	0	United Kingdom,Solomon Islands	( )	543.1	August 18
= 6	7.3	0	Japan,Bonin Islands	( )	500.0	October 7
= 7	7.2	20	Greece,Aegean Sea	X (Extreme)	15.0	February 19
= 7	7.2	3	New Zealand,South Island	IX (Violent)	20.0	May 24
= 7	7.2	200	Indonesia,Minahassa Peninsula	IX (Violent)	20.0	August 14
= 8	7.1	0	Taiwan, off the east coast of	VII (Very strong)	25.0	February 26
= 8	7.1	10,488	Iran,South Khorasan province	X (Extreme)	10.0	August 31
= 8	7.1	0	New Zealand,Kermadec Islands	( )	50.0	September 26
= 9	7.0	0	New Zealand,Kermadec Islands	( )	55.0	May 20
= 9	7.0	0	Soviet Union,Kuril Islands,Russia	( )	28.3	May 20
= 9	7.0	0	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu	VI (Strong)	32.1	June 12
= 9	7.0	0	Australia, off the north coast of mainlandPapua and New Guinea	VIII (Severe)	15.0	October 23

• Note: At least 7.0 magnitude

January

Strongest magnitude	7.4MwSoviet Union,Russia
Deadliest	6.4MwItaly 216 deaths
Total fatalities	224
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	1
6.0–6.9	6
5.0–5.9	1

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
4[1]	Nicaragua,Managua	4.6	5.0		Despite being a moderate magnitude there was some property damage. Costs were $2 million (1968 rate).
6[2][3]	Chile,Atacama Region	6.4	30.0	VI
13[4][5]	Taiwan, off the east coast	6.1	35.0	IV
15[6][7][8]	Italy,Sicily	6.4	10.0	X	216 people were killed and 563 were injured in the1968 Belice earthquake. Extensive destruction was caused in the area with costs reported at $320 million (1968 rate).	216	563
19[9][10]	United Kingdom,Solomon Islands	6.7	27.5	V
25[11]	Italy,Sicily	5.1	33.0		8 people were killed and 55 more were injured. Some damage was reported. Aftershock.	8	55
26[12][13]	Indonesia,Flores	6.8	30.6	VI
29[14][15]	Soviet Union,Kuril Islands,Russia	7.4	36.9	VII
29[16]	Soviet Union,Kuril Islands,Russia	6.1	33.0		Aftershock.

February

Strongest magnitude	7.3MwAustralia,Papua and New Guinea
Deadliest	7.2MwGreece 20 deaths
Total fatalities	24
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	3
6.0–6.9	2

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
4[17]	Soviet Union,Kuril Islands,Russia	6.6	23.5		Aftershock.
12[18][19][20]	Australia, southeast ofNew Ireland (island),Papua and New Guinea	7.3	30.0	VIII	Some damage was reported.
19[21][22][23]	Greece,Aegean Sea	7.2	15.0	X	The1968 Aegean Sea earthquake killed 20 people and injured 18 more. 500 homes were destroyed and 1,951 were damaged. Costs were $600,000 (1968 rate).	20	18
21[24][25][26]	Japan,Miyazaki Prefecture,Kyushu	6.2	10.0	VII	During the1968 Ebino earthquake, 3 people were killed and some damage was reported.	3
25[27]	Algeria,Bordj Bou Arreridj Province	4.9	0.0	VIII	1 person was killed and 4 were hurt. 100 homes collapsed.	1	4
26[28][29]	Taiwan, off the east coast of	7.1	25.0	VII

March

Strongest magnitude	6.4MwTonga
Deadliest	4.6MwKenya 1 death
Total fatalities	1
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	0
6.0–6.9	4

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
5[30][31]	Philippines, off the east coast ofMindanao	6.3	35.0	V
5[32][33]	Philippines, off the east coast ofMindanao	6.1	35.0	V	Aftershock.
7[34][35]	Australia,East New Britain Province,Papua and New Guinea	6.3	45.0	V
11[36]	Tonga	6.4	109.1
20[37]	Kenya,Homa Bay County	4.6	33.0		1 person was killed and another was injured. Some property damage was caused.	1	1

April

Strongest magnitude	7.5MwJapan
Deadliest	5.3MwIran 38 deaths
Total fatalities	39
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	1
6.0–6.9	4
5.0–5.9	1

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
1[38][39][40][41]	Japan, off the east coast ofKyushu	7.5	34.2	VIII	1 person was killed and 22 were injured in the1968 Hyuga-nada earthquake. Some homes were destroyed in both the earthquake and a subsequenttsunami.	1	22
1[42][43]	Japan, off the east coast ofKyushu	6.8	30.0	VI	Aftershock.
9[44][45]	United States, southernCalifornia	6.6	10.0	IX	Some damage was caused by the1968 Borrego Mountain earthquake.
26[46]	Western Samoa	6.2	30.0
26[47][48]	Mexico,Michoacan	6.1	30.0	VI
29[49]	Iran,West Azerbaijan province	5.3	34.0	VII	38 people were killed and 100 were injured. 1,000 homes were destroyed. Damage costs were $1 million (1968 rate).	38	100

May

Strongest magnitude	8.2MwJapan
Deadliest	8.2MwJapan 52 deaths
Total fatalities	55
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	1
7.0–7.9	5
6.0–6.9	6

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
14[50][51]	Japan,Ryukyu Islands	6.7	160.1	V
16[52][53][54][55]	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu	8.2	29.9	VIII	52 people were killed and 330 were injured in the1968 Tokachi earthquake. Atsunami was generated which contributed to the destruction. 1,218 homes were destroyed. Damage costs were $131 million (1968 rate). A large number of aftershocks followed. To prevent cluttering only those measuring above magnitude 6.5 will be listed.	52	330
16[56][57]	Japan, off the northeast coast ofHonshu	7.9	25.0	VII	Aftershock.
16[58]	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu	6.5	25.0		Aftershock.
16[59]	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu	6.5	43.0		Aftershock.
19[60]	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu	6.3	20.0		South of the aftershock sequence from May 16 event.
20[61]	New Zealand,Kermadec Islands	7.0	55.0		Doublet earthquake.
20[62]	New Zealand,Kermadec Islands	6.9	50.0
20[63]	Soviet Union,Kuril Islands,Russia	7.0	28.3
23[64][65][66]	New Zealand,South Island	7.2	20.0	IX	The1968 Inangahua earthquake caused 3 deaths and $3 million (1968 rate) worth of damage.	3
24[67]	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu	6.6	27.6		Aftershock.
28[68][69]	Indonesia,Papua (province)	7.5	45.0	VIII

June

Strongest magnitude	7.0MwJapan
Deadliest	6.8MwPeru 15 deaths
Total fatalities	15
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	1
6.0–6.9	3

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
7[70][71]	Indonesia,Central Sulawesi	6.7	35.0	VII
7[72][73]	Indonesia,South Sulawesi	6.2	38.0	VI	Aftershock.
12[74][75]	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu	7.0	32.1	VI	Aftershock of May 16 event.
19[76][77][78]	Peru,Loreto Region	6.8	15.0	VII	15 people were killed and some property damage was caused. Costs were $100,000 (1968 rate).	15

July

Strongest magnitude	7.3MwNew Zealand
Total fatalities	0
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	1
6.0–6.9	6

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
1[79][80]	Japan,Saitama Prefecture,Honshu	6.1	60.6	VI
2[81][82]	Mexico,Guerrero	6.4	57.9	VI
2[83][84]	Indonesia,Papua (province)	6.0	45.0	V
5[85][86]	Japan, off the east coast ofHonshu	6.3	47.0	IV
25[87][88][89]	New Zealand,Kermadec Islands	7.3	45.0	VI	Some damage was caused.
29[90][91]	Indonesia,West Papua (province)	6.2	20.0	V
30[92][93]	Peru, off the north coast of	6.5	31.8	VI

August

Strongest magnitude	7.6Mw 2 events
Deadliest	7.1MwIran 10,488 deaths
Total fatalities	10,976
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	6
6.0–6.9	9
5.0–5.9	0

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
1[94][95][96][97]	Philippines,Luzon	7.6	25.0	IX	The1968 Casiguran earthquake caused 270 deaths and 261 injuries. Some homes were destroyed and many were damaged. Costs were around $8 million (1968 rate). Atsunami was generated which left 1 person dead.	270	261
2[98][99][100]	Mexico,Oaxaca	7.3	25.0	VIII	18 people were killed. Property damage was $2.4 million (1968 rate).	18
3[101][102]	Japan,Ryukyu Islands	6.7	15.0	VI
3[103][104]	Philippines,Luzon	6.4	25.0	VI	Aftershock.
4[105][106]	Philippines, off the east coast ofMindanao	6.1	100.0	IV
5[107][108]	Japan, off the west coast ofShikoku	6.8	45.7	VII
10[109][110][111]	Indonesia,Molucca Sea	7.6	23.0	IX	Some damage was caused.
10[112]	Indonesia,Molucca Sea	6.5	25.0		Aftershock.
14[113][114]	Mexico, offshoreMichoacan	6.0	20.0	VI
14[115][116][117]	Indonesia,Minahassa Peninsula	7.2	20.0	IX	200 people were killed and 58 were injured in atsunami triggered by the1968 Sulawesi earthquake. 800 homes were destroyed.	200	58
18[118][119]	United Kingdom,Solomon Islands	7.3	543.1	III
21[120]	New Zealand,Kermadec Islands	6.5	15.0
23[121]	Bolivia,Tarija Department	6.3	533.6
28[122][123]	Philippines, off the east coast ofLuzon	6.4	20.0	V	Aftershock.
31[124][125][126]	Iran,South Khorasan province	7.1	10.0	X	The1968 Dasht-e Bayaz and Ferdows earthquakes caused major destruction in northeastIran. 10,488 people were killed and over 17,000 were injured. 12,000 homes were destroyed. $35 million (1968 rate) of costs were reported.	10,488	17,000

September

Strongest magnitude	7.1MwNew Zealand
Deadliest	6.2MwIran 700 deaths
Total fatalities	747
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	1
6.0–6.9	13

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
1[127][128][129]	Iran,Razavi Khorasan province	6.2	15.0	VIII	This was a strong aftershock of the1968 Dasht-e Bayaz and Ferdows earthquakes. 700 additional deaths were caused and 1,500 homes were destroyed.	700
3[130][131][132]	Turkey, offshoreBartin Province	6.3	20.0	VIII	24 people were killed and 200 were injured. 2,000 homes damaged or destroyed.	24	200
8[133][134]	Australia,East Sepik Province,Papua and New Guinea	6.3	30.0	VI
9[135][136]	Peru,Ucayali Region	6.1	142.3	IV
14[137][138]	Iran,Fars province	6.2	25.0	VII
16[139][140]	Australia, off the south coast ofNew Britain,Papua and New Guinea	6.8	35.0	VII
16[141][142]	Australia, off the south coast ofNew Britain,Papua and New Guinea	6.1	65.0	V	Aftershock.
20[143][144][145]	Venezuela,Sucre, Venezuela	6.5	103.4	IX	3 people were killed and some damage was caused.	3
21[146][147]	Japan, off the south coast ofHokkaido	6.7	58.3	VI
25[148]	New Zealand, off the south coast ofSouth Island	6.2	15.0
25[149][150][151]	Mexico,Chiapas	6.0	124.8	IV	20 people were killed and some damage was caused.	20
26[152]	New Zealand,Kermadec Islands	7.1	50.0
27[153][154]	Australia,East Sepik Province,Papua and New Guinea	6.4	15.0	VIII
28[155][156]	Peru,Lima Region	6.1	65.0	V

October

Strongest magnitude	7.3MwJapan
Total fatalities	0
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	2
6.0–6.9	6

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
7[157]	Japan,Bonin Islands	7.3	500.0
7[158][159]	Japan, off the south coast ofHokkaido	6.5	35.0	VI
10[160][161]	Australia, off the south coast ofNew Britain,Papua and New Guinea	6.1	48.9	V
14[162][163][164]	Australia,Western Australia	6.5	15.0	IX	The1968 Meckering earthquake caused property damage with costs reaching $2.2 million (1968 rate).
20[165][166]	Taiwan, off the east coast of	6.2	22.5	V
23[167][168][169]	Australia, off the coast ofEast Sepik Province,Papua and New Guinea	7.0	15.0	VIII	Some damage was caused.
24[170]	Philippines, southeast ofMindanao	6.3	45.0
29[171][172]	United States, northernAlaska	6.7	10.0	VIII

November

Strongest magnitude	6.5MwNew Hebrides,Vanuatu
Total fatalities	0
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	0
6.0–6.9	3

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
4[173]	New Hebrides,Vanuatu	6.5	597.0
17[174]	Venezuela,Zulia	6.1	175.7
22[175][176]	Philippines,Luzon	6.1	35.0	V

December

Strongest magnitude	6.6MwAustralia,Papua and New Guinea
Total fatalities	0
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	0
6.0–6.9	5

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
5[177][178]	Greece,Dodecanese Islands	6.1	20.0	VI
5[179][180]	Iceland,Southern Peninsula (Iceland)	6.0	10.0	VIII
7[181]	Australia,Bismarck Sea,Papua and New Guinea	6.6	15.0
17[182][183]	United States, southernAlaska	6.3	109.6	V
19[184][185]	Soviet Union, easternKamchatka,Russia	6.0	44.1	V

• Lists of earthquakes by year
• 1968 earthquakes
• Lists of 20th-century earthquakes

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata