November 2, 1931 Earthquake: Kyushu, Japan
A magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck Kyushu, Japan on November 2, 1931 at 10:02:00 UTC, 60 km below the surface. It killed 1 person.
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
- November 2, 1931
- Time
- 10:02:00 UTC
- Place
- Kyushu, Japan
- Magnitude
- 7.5
- Focal depth
- 60 km (37 mi)
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 32.000° N, 131.500° E
- Country
- Japan
The toll
- Deaths
- 1
- Houses destroyed
- 14
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.
Reference #414:
There was an earthquake with source off the coast of Miyazaki Prefecture. It had a magnitude of 6-7 degrees (IV JMA) in the Prefectures of Miyazaki, Kumamoto, Oita and on the southwest of Shikoku Island. Fourteen homes were destroyed and one person died. There were fore- and aftershocks. It was accompanied by a weak tsunami, which was registered on the coast of Kyushu and Shikoku Islands and the Kii Peninsula.
Iida et al. (1967): 2.XI; 10h30m; 32.2 N., 132.1 E.; 20 km; M=6.6, m=-0.3.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- May 21, 1792, Kyusyu Island, Japan
- June 30, 744, Shimabara, Yatsushiro, Higo, Japan
- September 4, 1596, Beppu Bay, Japan
- April 15, 2016, Kumamoto, Oita, Japan
- October 30, 1662, Hiuganada, Japan
- January 12, 1914, Sakurijima, Japan
- September 10, 1597, Beppu Bay, Japan
- July 28, 2026, Kumamoto, Japan
- December 7, 1922, Kyushu, Japan
- August 6, 1984, Nobeoka, Kyushu, Japan
- July 28, 1889, Kumamoto, Japan
- February 21, 1968, Kyushu, Japan
- March 18, 1987, Miyazaki, Naze, Kyushu, Japan
- February 26, 1961, Miyazaki, Japan
- November 18, 1941, Shikoku, Japan
More
Significant earthquakes of 1931The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1931Recent 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 3480.