February 21, 1937 Earthquake: Kuril Islands, Russia
A magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck Kuril Islands, Russia on February 21, 1937 at 07:02:00 UTC, 45 km below the surface.
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
- February 21, 1937
- Time
- 07:02:00 UTC
- Place
- Kuril Islands, Russia
- Magnitude
- 7.6
- Focal depth
- 45 km (28 mi)
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 44.500° N, 149.400° E
- Country
- Russia
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 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.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- September 7, 1918, Kuril Islands, Russia
- June 29, 1780, Kuril Islands, Russia
- October 4, 1994, Hokkaido, Kuril Islands, Japan, Russia
- October 12, 1963, Kuril Islands, Russia
- December 3, 1995, Iturup, Matua, Kunashir, Kuril Islands, Russia
- April 9, 1959, Kuril Islands, Russia
- October 13, 1963, Kuril Islands, Russia
- March 23, 1978, Kuril Islands, Russia
- March 22, 1978, Kuril Islands, Russia
- January 21, 1976, Kuril Islands, Russia
- March 24, 1978, Kuril Islands, Russia
- November 12, 1958, Kuril Islands, Russia
- June 11, 1965, Kuril Islands, Russia
- March 22, 1978, Kuril Islands, Russia
- November 6, 1958, Kuril Islands, Russia
More
Significant earthquakes of 1937The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1937Recent 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 3592.