M5.5 earthquake 135 km NNW of Hihifo, Tonga
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck 135 km NNW of Hihifo, Tonga on Mon, Apr 14, 1986, 1:38 PM GMT-11 (00:38 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.8 109 km NW of Hihifo, Tonga. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.5 (mw), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 1986-04-15 00:38:59 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 14.856° S, 174.348° 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.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.5 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.545 km NNW of Hihifo, Tonga · 14778 days ago · 89 km deep · 92 km away
- 5.8109 km NW of Hihifo, Tonga · 14762 days ago · 33 km deep · 32 km away
- 5.452 km N of Hihifo, Tonga · 14736 days ago · 33 km deep · 87 km away
- 4.585 km N of Hihifo, Tonga · 14733 days ago · 33 km deep · 65 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayTonga earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0002sxa (also filed as gcmtb041586a, gcmt19860415003859, iscgem498240). Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 5:47 PM UTC.