May 6, 1917 Earthquake: Taiwan
A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck Taiwan on May 6, 1917 at 12:19 UTC, 33 km below the surface. It caused a tsunami.
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
- May 6, 1917
- Time
- 12:19 UTC
- Place
- Taiwan
- Magnitude
- 5.8 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 33 km (21 mi)
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 23.200° N, 121.600° E
- Country
- Taiwan
The toll
The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this earthquake.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
Reference #414:
1917, May 6, 21:19 [local time]. There was an earthquake, 23.2 N., 121.6 E, magnitude 5.8; accompanied by a tsunami on the east coast of Taiwan Island.
Reference #79:
1917, May 6, 12:19 UTC. 23.2 N, 121.6 E, magnitude 5.8, shallow depth. Taiwan Strait.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- May 22, 1782, Tainan, Taiwan
- April 20, 1935, Mialoi, Taiwan
- July 16, 1935, Xiinzhu, Taiwan
- September 20, 1999, Nantou, Taichung, Taizhong, Taiwan
- 1721, Tainan, Taiwan
- June 6, 1862, Tainan, Taiwan
- March 16, 1906, Jiayi, Taiwan
- December 3, 1848, Zhanghua, Taiwan
- February 1845, Zhanghua, Taiwan
- December 16, 1941, Taiwan
- January 30, 1736, Tainan, Taiwan
- August 9, 1792, Jiayi, Tainan, Taiwan
- August 28, 1916, Taiwan
- November 5, 1904, Jiayi, Taiwan
- February 5, 2016, Tainan, Taiwan
More
Significant earthquakes of 1917The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1917Recent 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 6268.