M5.6 earthquake 53 km SSE of Chipinge, Zimbabwe
A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck 53 km SSE of Chipinge, Zimbabwe on Sat, Dec 22, 2018, 7:37 AM GMT+2 (05:37 UTC), 16 km (10 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 5.6 (mww), moderate
- Local time
- UTC
- 2018-12-22 05:37:38 UTC
- Depth
- 16.0 km (9.9 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 20.643° S, 32.803° E
- Region
- Zimbabwe
- Felt reports
- 64
- Strongest shaking
- VII, very strong shaking
- PAGER alert
- Yellow
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- VII, very strong shaking
- Peak ground acceleration
- 21.0% of gravity
- Peak ground velocity
- 2.7 cm/s
- Map
- Automatic
Did you feel it?
64 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was VI, strong shaking.
Estimated impact
The USGS PAGER system estimates deaths and economic losses from the shaking and the population and buildings exposed to it.
- Alert level
- Yellow: some damage and deaths possible, a local or regional response
| Range | Chance |
|---|---|
| Under 1 | 39% |
| 1 to 10 | 35% |
| 10 to 100 | 20% |
| 100 to 1,000 | 5% |
| 1,000 to 10,000 | Under 1% |
| 10,000 to 100,000 | Under 1% |
| 100,000 to 10,000,000 | Under 1% |
| Range, million USD | Chance |
|---|---|
| Under 1 | 37% |
| 1 to 10 | 35% |
| 10 to 100 | 21% |
| 100 to 1,000 | 6% |
| 1,000 to 10,000 | Under 1% |
| 10,000 to 100,000 | Under 1% |
| 100,000 to 10,000,000 | Under 1% |
Fault motion and ground failure
How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.
- Faulting
- Normal
- Moment magnitude
- 5.6 Mww
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 12°, dip 39°, rake -99°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 204°, dip 52°, rake -83°
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Location uncertainty
- About 6.2 km horizontally, 1.4 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.05
- Depth from
- From modeling of broad-band P waveforms
- Station coverage gap
- 39°
- Stations used
- 182
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 2.5 and up: 0 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
None recorded.
Earthquakes todayZimbabwe earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us2000iw7g (also filed as iscgem614459970). Read Mon, Sep 21, 2026, 3:50 AM UTC.