M4.9 earthquake Fiji region
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck in the Fiji region on Sun, May 21, 1978, 9:18 AM GMT+12 (21:18 UTC), 673 km (418 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.1 Fiji region. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.9 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-05-20 21:18:29 UTC
- Depth
- 673.0 km (418.2 mi), deep
- Epicenter
- 20.663° S, 179.212° W
- Region
- Fiji
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Stations used
- 7
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.9 and up: 2 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
After
Earthquakes todayFiji earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000umx. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 11:27 PM UTC.