M5.1 earthquake Fiji region
A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck in the Fiji region on Thu, Sep 21, 1978, 8:45 PM GMT+13 (07:45 UTC), 588 km (365 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.2 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
- 5.1 (mb), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1978-09-21 07:45:05 UTC
- Depth
- 588.0 km (365.4 mi), deep
- Epicenter
- 20.893° S, 178.810° 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
- 55
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.1 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.8Fiji region · 17529 days ago · 626 km deep · 44 km away
- 5.2Fiji region · 17528 days ago · 574 km deep · 94 km away
- 5.4Fiji region · 17507 days ago · 550 km deep · 73 km away
- 5.3Fiji region · 17498 days ago · 602 km deep · 14 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayFiji earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0000wne. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 8:24 PM UTC.