M7.4 earthquake 41 km SW of Nyaunglebin, Myanmar
A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck 41 km SW of Nyaunglebin, Myanmar on Mon, May 5, 1930, 8:16 PM GMT+6:30 (13:46 UTC), 35 km (22 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 7.4 (Mw, moment), major
- Magnitude from
- ISC-GEM global catalog
- Local time
- UTC
- 1930-05-05 13:46:01 UTC
- Depth
- 35.0 km (21.7 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 17.733° N, 96.406° E
- Region
- Myanmar
- Strongest shaking
- VI, strong shaking
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Deaths and damage
From NOAA NCEI’s Significant Earthquake Database (record 3409), matched to this event by time and place.
- Deaths
- 500
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million)
- Houses destroyed
- Many (101 to 1,000)
- Houses damaged
- Many (101 to 1,000)
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
From Wikipedia
An earthquake affected Myanmar on 5 May 1930 with a moment magnitude (Mw) of 7.4. The shock occurred 35 km (22 mi) beneath the surface with a maximum Rossi–Forel intensity of IX (Devastating tremor). The earthquake was the result of rupture along a 131 km (81 mi) segment of the Sagaing Fault—a major strike-slip fault that runs through the country. Extensive damage was reported in the southern part of the country, particularly in Bago and Yangon, where buildings collapsed and fires erupted. At least 550, and possibly up to 7,000 people were killed. A moderate tsunami struck the Burmese coast which caused minor damage to ships and a port. The earthquake was felt over 570,000 km2 (220,000 sq mi) and as far as Shan State and Thailand; it was followed by many aftershocks including several damaging ones. A further, related, earthquake in December was similarly sized and also occurred along the Sagaing Fault.
Text from Wikipedia, “1930 Bago earthquake”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Quoted as written; the full article has the rest.
The article is about the earthquake NOAA’s record describes, matched to this one by date, place and magnitude.
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- VI, strong shaking
- Peak ground acceleration
- 20.8% of gravity
- Peak ground velocity
- 3.4 cm/s
- Map
- Automatic
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.30
- Depth from
- From location
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 4.4 and up: 0 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
None recorded.
Earthquakes todayMyanmar earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event iscgem907352. Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 5:16 AM UTC.