Earthquakes in1983

class=notpageimage| Approximate epicenters of the earthquakes in 1983 4.0–5.9 magnitude 6.0–6.9 magnitude 7.0–7.9 magnitude 8.0+ magnitude
Strongest magnitude	Papua New Guinea, southeast ofNew Ireland (island), (Magnitude 7.6) March 18
Deadliest	Turkey,Erzurum Province, (Magnitude 6.8) October 30
Total fatalities	2,608
Number by magnitude
9.0+	0
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	14
6.0–6.9	125
5.0–5.9	1,664
4.0–4.9	3,517
← 1982 1984 →

This is alist of earthquakes in 1983. Onlyearthquakes of magnitude 6 or above are included, unless they result in damage and/or casualties, or are notable for some other reason. Events in remote areas will not be listed but included in statistics and maps. Countries are entered on the lists in order of their status in this particular year. 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.

Rank	Death toll	Magnitude	Location	MMI	Depth (km)	Date
1	1,342	6.8	Turkey,Erzurum Province	IX (Violent)	11.6	October 30
2	663	6.3	Guinea,Boke Region	IX (Violent)	11.3	December 22
3	350	5.5	Colombia,Cauca Department	VIII (Severe)	22.2	March 31
4	104	7.4	Japan, easternSea of Japan	VIII (Severe)	23.7	May 26
5	34	5.7	China,Shandong Province	VII (Very strong)	19.0	November 6
6	30	5.2	Iran,Mazandaran Province	IV (Light)	33.0	March 25
7	26	7.4	Afghanistan,Badakhshan Province	VII (Very strong)	214.5	December 30
8	16	6.5	Philippines,Luzon	VIII (Severe)	28.8	August 17
9	12	4.7	Yugoslavia,Skopje Statistical Region,North Macedonia	VII (Very strong)	24.4	February 25
10	10	7.0	Peru,Department of Amazonas, Peru	VII (Very strong)	104.2	April 12
10	10	6.4	Papua New Guinea,East New Britain Province	VI (Strong)	26.0	December 22

Listed are earthquakes with at least 10 dead.

Rank	Magnitude	Death toll	Location	MMI	Depth (km)	Date
1	7.6	0	Papua New Guinea, southeast ofNew Ireland	VII (Very strong)	88.8	March 18
2	7.4	104	Japan, easternSea of Japan	VIII (Severe)	23.7	May 26
2	7.4	5	Chile,Atacama Region	VIII (Severe)	14.8	October 4
2	7.4	26	Afghanistan,Badakhshan Province	VII (Very strong)	214.5	December 30
5	7.3	0	Indonesia,Banda Sea	VI (Strong)	178.5	November 24
5	7.3	0	United Kingdom,Chagos Archipelago	VI (Strong)	10.0	November 30
7	7.2	0	United Kingdom,South Sandwich Islands	( )	24.0	October 22
8	7.1	6	Costa Rica,Puntarenas Province	VIII (Severe)	37.0	April 3
8	7.1	0	Soviet Union,Kamchatka Peninsula,Russia	VII (Very strong)	62.6	August 17
10	7.0	0	Greece,Ionian Islands	VIII (Severe)	14.3	January 17
10	7.0	0	New Zealand,Kermadec Islands	( )	238.0	January 26
10	7.0	10	Peru,Department of Amazonas, Peru	VII (Very strong)	104.2	April 12
10	7.0	0	Iran,Sistan and Baluchistan Province	VII (Very strong)	64.0	April 18
10	7.0	0	Guatemala, off the west coast	VII (Very strong)	67.1	December 2

Listed are earthquakes with at least 7.0 magnitude.

This list isincomplete; you can help byadding missing items.(November 2024)

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
1[1]	Bolivia,La Paz Department (Bolivia)	6.3	172.0
8[2]	Tonga	6.4	33.0
16[3][4]	Papua New Guinea, off the east coast	6.7	234.9	IV	Some damage was caused to communications systems.
17[5][6]	Greece,Ionian Islands	7.0	14.3	VIII	Some damage was caused.
24[7][8]	Mexico, off the coast ofOaxaca	6.3	56.8	VII	Some damage was caused.
24[9][10]	India,Andaman Islands	6.8	78.0	VI
26[11]	New Zealand,Kermadec Islands	7.0	238.0

February

Strongest magnitude	6.9MwChile
Deadliest	4.7MwYugoslavia,Macedonia SR 12 deaths
Total fatalities	12
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	0
6.0–6.9	9
5.0–5.9	115
4.0–4.9	279

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
12[12][13]	Philippines, southeast ofMindanao	6.3	51.0	IV
13[14][15][16]	China,Xinjiang Province	6.2	16.1	VIII	2 injuries were reported as well as damage.		2
13[17][18]	United States, north ofGuam	5.7	105.0	IV	1 person was injured and minor damage was reported.		1
14[19][20]	United States, southeast ofAlaska Peninsula	6.5	47.0	V
20[21][22]	Philippines, southeast ofMindanao	6.4	60.5	IV
25[23][24][25]	Yugoslavia,Skopje Statistical Region,Macedonia SR	4.7	24.4	VII	12 people died after suffering heart attacks. Some damage was reported with costs reaching $500,000 (1983 rate).	12
25[26][27]	Chile,Arica y Parinacota Region	6.9	146.0	VI	Minor damage was caused.
26[28][29]	Soviet Union,Districts under Central Government Jurisdiction,Tajikistan	5.3	49.2	VII	Major damage was caused.
27[30][31]	Japan,Chiba Prefecture,Honshu	5.9	78.3	V	11 people were injured.		11

March

Strongest magnitude	7.6MwPapua New Guinea
Deadliest	5.5MwColombia 350 deaths
Total fatalities	381
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	1
6.0–6.9	9
5.0–5.9	119
4.0–4.9	321

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
8[32][33]	Venezuela, off the coast ofSucre (state)	5.9	82.4	IV	10 people were injured whilst evacuating buildings.		10
10[34]	Soviet Union,Kuril Islands,Russia	6.2	33.0
12[35][36]	Indonesia, south ofAmbon Island	6.0	33.0	V	Foreshock to following event.
12[37][38][39]	Indonesia, south ofAmbon Island	6.7	16.9	VI	Some damage was reported. Atsunami was observed locally.
15[40][41]	Japan,Shizuoka Prefecture,Honshu	5.3	43.2	IV	1 person was killed and 2 were injured. Some damage was reported.	1	2
15[42][43]	Philippines, southeast ofMindanao	6.7	41.0	IV
18[44][45][46]	Papua New Guinea, southeast ofNew Ireland (island)	7.6	88.8	VII	Property damage and landslides were caused by the shaking. Atsunami was observed in the area.
20[47][48]	Papua New Guinea, southeast ofNew Ireland (island)	6.4	80.1	VI	Aftershock of March 18 event.
21[49][50]	Tonga, southwest ofTongatapu	6.7	68.0	VI
23[51][52][53]	Greece,Ionian Islands	6.4	19.1	VII	7 people were injured. 160 homes sustained damage. Aftershock of January 17 event.		7
25[54][55][56]	Iran,Mazandaran Province	5.2	33.0	IV	30 people were killed and 61 were hurt. Many homes were damaged with costs reaching $5 million (1983 rate).	30	61
31[57][58][59]	Colombia,Cauca Department	5.5	22.2	VIII	Despite the moderate magnitude the1983 Popayan earthquake caused major destruction in the area. Up to 350 people died and 1,200 were injured. $410.9 million (1983 rate) worth of damage was caused.	350	1,200

April

Strongest magnitude	7.1MwCosta Rica
Deadliest	7.1MwCosta Rica 6 deaths
Total fatalities	6
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	3
6.0–6.9	5

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
3[60]	Costa Rica, 12 North ofGolfito	7.1	37.0	VII	5 people died from heart attacks, another was killed from a collapsed building and 4 people were injured.	6	4
4[61]	Indonesia, 68 km Southwest ofSabang	6.9	78.5	VII	Some damage inBanda Aceh	-	-
4[62]	Russian SFSR,Kuril Islands	6.5	51.0	V	-	-	-
8[63]	Yemen,Owen fracture zone	6.7	10.0	I	-	-	-
12[64]	Peru, 92 km northeast ofLa Peca	7.0	104.2	VII	-	-	-
18[65]	Iran,Saravan	7.0	64.0	VII	-	-	-
24[66]	Solomon Islands, 124 km Southeast ofGizo	6.4	12.4	VII	-	-	-
30[67]	Japan,Hokkaido	6.5	30.4	V	-	-	-

May

Strongest magnitude	7.4MwJapan
Deadliest	7.4MwJapan 104 deaths
Total fatalities	104
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	3
6.0–6.9	4

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
2[68]	United States,California	6.7	9.6	VIII	The1983 Coalinga earthquake destroyed an 8-story building inCoalinga, 94 people were injured.	-	94
10[69]	Papua New Guinea,Kimbe	6.5	112.4	VI	-	-	-
10[70]	Papua New Guinea,Kokopo	6.7	71.6	VI	-	-	-
15[71]	Tonga, 168 km Northwest ofPangai	6.5	33.0	I	-	-	-
26[72]	Japan,Japanese Sea	7.4	23.7	VII	The1983 Sea of Japan earthquake was One of the largest earthquakes in 1983, 104 people were killed and 324 were injured.	104	324

June

Strongest magnitude	6.9MwVietnam
Total fatalities	0
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	0
6.0–6.9	6

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
1[73]	Tonga, 147 km Southwest ofHihifo	6.6	179.6	II	-	-	-
9[74]	Japan,Southern Hokkaido	6.3	28.0	V	This Was an Aftershock tothe 7.8 earthquake on May 26.	-	-
21[75]	Japan, 122 km Northwest ofHokkaido	6.7	9.9	V	An aftershock tothe 7.8 earthquake on May 26, some damage was caused and a 1.0 m (3 ft 3 in) high tsunami was observed.	-	-
21[76]	Taiwan,Chinese Sea	6.4	36.9	V	-	-	-
24[77]	Vietnam, 45 km Northeast ofDien Bien Phu	6.3	18.4	VII	–	-	-

July

Strongest magnitude	6.9MwUnited Kingdom
Deadliest	6.1MwTurkey 5 deaths
Total fatalities	7
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	0
6.0–6.9	7

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
3[78]	Costa Rica, 17 km South ofPejibaye	6.5	33.0	VII	2 people were killed and 60 were injured.	2	60
5[79]	France, Southeast of theLoyalty Islands,New Caledonia	6.5	33.0	III	-	-	-
5[80]	Turkey, 10 km North ofBiga	6.1	10.0	IX	The1983 Biga earthquake Killed 5 People and Injured 26 More.	5	26
11[81]	United Kingdom,South Shetland Islands	6.9	10.0	IV	-	-	-
12[82]	United States, 37 km Northwest ofTatitlek,Alaska	6.6	37.0	VI	Some Damage Occurred inValdez	-	-
24[83]	Soviet Union, 82 km North ofYelizovo,Russia	6.2	180.4	IV	-	-	-
24[84]	Indonesia, 49 km North ofKomodo	6.4	48.1	VI	-	-	-

August

Strongest magnitude	7.1MwRussia
Deadliest	6.5MwPhilippines 16 deaths
Total fatalities	16
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	1
6.0–6.9	4

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
6[85]	Greece,Aegean Sea	6.8	2.4	VII	Some Damage Occurred to Buildings	-	-
17[86]	Russia,Kamchatka	7.1	62.6	VII	-	-	-
17[87]	Philippines, 16 km Northeast ofPiddig	6.5	28.8	VIII	16 people were killed and 47 people were injured.	16	47
25[88]	Japan,Hiroshima	6.5	126.4	V	One Person was Injured and Some Landslides Occurred.	-	1
30[89]	Tonga, 201 Southeast ofHihifo	6.1	38.7	IV	-	-	-

September

Strongest magnitude	6.7MwWallis and Futuna
Total fatalities	0
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
7[90]	United States, 46 km Northwest ofTatitlek,Alaska	6.4	45.0	VI	Some Damage Occurred inAnchorage.	-	-
12[91]	Afghanistan,Badakhshan	6.2	208.8	IV	Some Damage Occurred inKashmir,Pakistan.	-	-
15[92]	Mexico,Chiapas	6.3	115.2	V	-	-	-
17[93]	Wallis and Futuna	6.7	33.0	IV	-	-	-

October

Strongest magnitude	7.4MwChile
Deadliest	6.8MwTurkey 1,342 deaths
Total fatalities	1,349
Number by magnitude
8.0–8.9	0
7.0–7.9	2
6.0–6.9	5

Date	Country and location	Mw	Depth (km)	MMI	Notes	Casualties
						Dead	Injured
4[94]	Chile,Atacama Region	7.4	14.8	VIII	At least 5 people were killed, and 24 people were injured.	5	24
6[95]	Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic, 94 km southeast ofKurchatov	6.0	1.0	II	This earthquake was caused by anUnderground nuclear explosion	-	-
15[96]	Solomon Islands offshore, 58 km West ofGizo	6.5	7.4	VI	-	-	-
16[97]	Indonesia, 231 Northwest ofGorontalo	6.5	40.1	VII	At least 17 buildings had collapsed in the epicentral area.	-	-
22	United Kingdom,South Sandwich Islands	7.2	24.0	VI	-	-	-
28[98]	United States,Idaho	6.9	10.0	IX	The1983 Borah Peak earthquake was the largest earthquake ever recorded inIdaho, 2 people were killed with an equal amount injured.	2	2
30[99]	Turkey, 27 km East ofNarman	6.8	11.6	IX	The1983 Erzurum earthquake completely destroyed 50 villages inErzurum andKars, 1,342 people were Killed and 534 people were injured.	1,342	534

• Lists of earthquakes by year
• 1983 earthquakes
• Lists of 20th-century earthquakes

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Incomplete lists from November 2024
• Articles using Mw magnitude scale