ShakeMap (Calculated intensity of this Myanmar earthquake):
View ShakeMap, Epicenter, and historical seismicity on an interactive map
What happened:
Strong and dangerous earthquake in eastern Myanmar (Shan State) near the border with Laos. According to confirmed USGS data, magnitude 5.9 was reached. It was a shallow quake that was preceded by a 4.8 foreshock. However, a sequence of more minor quakes has been ongoing in this area for several months. The shaking of the mainshock was felt widely in eastern Myanmar and nearby areas of Thailand, Laos, and China. Severe damage can be expected in close villages as well as landslides.
Update 19:49 UTC
The earthquake was felt strongly also in the Chinese province of Yunnan. Weibo users shared their experiences online, and some reported minor damage to their homes (Intensity V). However, officially confirmed losses were not reported yet. The Chinese disaster management has sent rescue teams to the border area to check for possible damage to houses.
Also, people from Myanmar shared their experiences:
Current earthquake activity in Myanmar:
In the past 30 days, 8 earthquakes of magnitude 3.8 or higher were detected in Shan, Myanmar (see map section). Therefore, the earthquake activity of the past month has been much higher relative to long-term trends (more than 20% deviation).
Statistic:
Since 1960, 25 earthquakes larger than Magnitude 5.9 have been detected in this region. This makes an average of 0.43 earthquakes larger than M5.9 per year in Myanmar. Therefore, the general earthquake activity is usually very high, and quakes of this size have an average recurrence time of approx. 2.3 years (28 months).
Largest earthquakes in this map section* (Myanmar and nearby)
Date | Magnitude | Depth (km) |
---|---|---|
1988-11-6 | 7.7 | 18 |
1991-1-5 | 7.0 | 20 |
1983-6-24 | 6.9 | 33 |
2011-3-24 | 6.9 | 8 |
1995-7-11 | 6.8 | 12 |
2012-11-11 | 6.8 | 14 |
2003-9-21 | 6.6 | 10 |
1973-8-16 | 6.4 | 33 |
1988-11-6 | 6.4 | 10 |
1983-6-24 | 6.3 | 18 |
*Data: USGS (Magnitude 5 +, since 1960)