M4.5 earthquake Fiji region
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck in the Fiji region on Sun, May 24, 1981, 2:43 AM GMT+13 (13:43 UTC), 548 km (341 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.2 288 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.5 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1981-05-23 13:43:52 UTC
- Depth
- 548.2 km (340.6 mi), deep
- Epicenter
- 20.311° S, 178.208° 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.
- Depth from
- FROM_LOCATION
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 10 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.3285 km SE of Levuka, Fiji · 16555 days ago · 608 km deep · 75 km away
- 4.7274 km W of Haveluloto, Tonga · 16553 days ago · 478 km deep · 65 km away
- 4.8278 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga · 16545 days ago · 510 km deep · 49 km away
- 5.2288 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga · 16542 days ago · 531 km deep · 42 km away
- 5.0288 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga · 16538 days ago · 402 km deep · 57 km away
- 4.9292 km SE of Levuka, Fiji · 16538 days ago · 614 km deep · 68 km away
- 5.1Fiji region · 16525 days ago · 591 km deep · 59 km away
- 4.3276 km WNW of Haveluloto, Tonga · 16513 days ago · 486 km deep · 51 km away
- 4.7Fiji region · 16509 days ago · 605 km deep · 72 km away
- 4.8Fiji region · 16506 days ago · 409 km deep · 88 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayFiji earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001dtz. Read Sat, Sep 26, 2026, 5:05 PM UTC.