January 19, 1929 Earthquake: Htawgaw, Myanmar
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck Htawgaw, Myanmar on January 19, 1929 at 11:19 UTC.
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
- January 19, 1929
- Time
- 11:19 UTC
- Place
- Htawgaw, Myanmar
- Magnitude
- 5.5 (Ms)
- Intensity
- 9 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 25.500° N, 98.000° E
- Country
- Myanmar
The toll
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
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.
January 19, 1929, 6 p.m. It was reported to be the severest shock ever felt in Htawgaw. All the stone masonry buildings at Htawgaw were so badly damaged that they were considered no longer fit for human habitation. This shock was reported by the Deputy Commissioner of Bhamo and Katha as felt in their districts also, and from at least as far as Teng Yueh in Yunnan. From the nature of the damage to the buildings, raised almost on solid rock, the intensity of the shock on the Rossi Forel scale must have been IX (reference #1185).
January 19, 1929, 19:19:33 Beijing time, 25.5 N, 98 E, magnitude 5.5, northwest of Tengchong, Yunnan Province. (reference #3939)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- March 13, 1577, Tengchong, Yunnan, China
- June 27, 1948, Yunnan Province, China
- March 10, 2011, Pingyuan, Yunnan Province, China
- December 21, 1579, Baoshan, Yunnan Province, China
- August 21, 2008, Yunnan Province, China
- May 17, 2016, Shimen, Yunnan Province, China
- May 1906, Yunnan Province, China
- August 19, 2008, Yunnan Province, China
- May 30, 2014, Yingjiang, Yunnan Province, China
- May 23, 2014, Yunnan Province, China
- September 21, 1930, Yunnan Province, China, Myanmar
- October 8, 1512, Yunnan Province, China
- June 20, 2011, Baoshan, Yunnan Province, China
- June 11, 1961, Yunnan Province, China
- June 4, 1929, Myitkyina, Myanmar
More
Significant earthquakes of 1929The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1929Recent 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 3386.