April 23, 1909 Earthquake: Ribatejo, Benavente, Portugal
A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck Ribatejo, Benavente, Portugal on April 23, 1909 at 17:39:36 UTC. It killed 30 people.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- April 23, 1909
- Time
- 17:39:36 UTC
- Place
- Ribatejo, Benavente, Portugal
- Magnitude
- 6.6 (Ms)
- Intensity
- 10 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 38.900° N, 8.800° W
- Country
- Portugal
The toll
- Deaths
- 30
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
- Houses destroyed
- Some (about 51 to 100)
- Houses damaged
- Some (about 51 to 100)
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
April 23, 1909, 17:40 UTC, 38.9 N, 8.8 W, magnitude 6.6, intensity X. (reference #1004)
April 23, 1909, 17:39:36.8 UTC, 38.9 N, W, 8.8 W, intensity X. (reference #1193)
April 23, 1909, intensity X, earthquake at Ribatejo between Lisbon and Santarem. Destruction partial of Salvaterra of Magos and 40% of Benavente (30 deaths). (reference #1093)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- January 26, 1531, Lisbon, Portugal
- January 28, 1551, Lisbon, Portugal
- 1151, Lisbon, Portugal
- June 6, 1807, Lisbon, Portugal
- November 11, 1858, Setubal, Portugal
- March 6, 1719, Algarve, Spain, Portugal
- March 29, 1756, Lisbon, Portugal
- December 26, 1764, Lisbon, Portugal
- December 19, 1847, Lisbon, Portugal
- December 18, 1926, Lisbon, Portugal
- July 28, 1597, Monte Santo, Lisbon, Portugal
- July 22, 1598, Monte Santo, Lisbon, Portugal
- 1344, Lisbon, Portugal
- April 5, 1772, Lisbon, Portugal
- April 28, 1752, Buarcos, Aveiro, Portugal
More
Significant earthquakes of 1909The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1909Recent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 2864.