January 15, 1940 Earthquake: Italy
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck Italy on January 15, 1940 at 13:19:24 UTC, 15 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
- January 15, 1940
- Time
- 13:19:24 UTC
- Place
- Italy
- Magnitude
- 4.8 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 15 km (9 mi)
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 38.100° N, 13.500° E
- Country
- Italy
The toll
- Deaths
- 1
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million)
- Houses destroyed
- Many (101 to 1,000)
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.
1940, January 15. Calabrian Arc, Island of Sicily, the northern shore. An earthquake occurred in Misilmeri and Villabate near Palermo. A loud noise was heard far away from the area that underwent the strongest shocks. Very rough sea was observed near Palermo and the adjacent shores. (reference #2130)
A strong shock (VIII MCS) occurred, located in land about 20 Km far from the coast of Palermo. The most affected localities were Misilmeri, Villabate, Ficarazzi and Palermo. In Palermo the Sant'Anna church suffered severe damage with the collapse of part of the front. Many buildings were ruined. One victim reported. Some aftershocks lasted for a few days. (reference #11164, v.2)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- December 28, 1908, Messina, Sicily, Calabria, Italy
- January 9, 1693, Sicily, Calabria, Catania, Italy
- January 11, 1693, Sicily, Calabria, Italy
- February 4, 1169, Siracusa (Syracuse), Calabria, Sicily, Italy
- 1137, Catania, Sicily, Italy
- August 6, 1757, Siracusa (Syracuse), Italy
- February 6, 1783, Messina Straits, Italy
- January 21, 1065, Catania,messina,milazzo,pale, Sicily, Italy
- September 1, 1726, Palermo, Marsala, Mazzara, Italy
- January 15, 1968, Sicily, Italy
- May 8, 1914, Catania, Etna, Italy
- August 25, 1613, Naso, Italy
- September 8, 1818, Madonie, Italy
- February 20, 1818, Acireale, Catania, Calabria, Italy
- July 19, 1865, Etna, Italy
More
Significant earthquakes of 1940The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1940Recent 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 7774.