Tonga earthquakes

M5.6 earthquake 81 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga

A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck 81 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga on Sun, Jul 5, 1981, 2:02 PM GMT-11 (01:02 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M7.7 133 km NE of Hihifo, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 5.6 (mb), moderate
Local time: Sun, Jul 5, 1981, 2:02 PM GMT-11
UTC: 1981-07-06 01:02:25 UTC
Depth: 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 15.290° S, 173.462° W
Region: Tonga
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: OPERATOR_ASSIGNED

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Apia, SamoaPopulation 40,407. Forecast244 kmSW

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.6 and up: 17 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

Earthquakes today Tonga earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0001ehz (also filed as gcmtb070681b, gcmt19810706010225, iscgem623155). Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 11:01 AM UTC.