February 12, 1946 Earthquake: Hodna Mountains, Algeria
A magnitude 5.6 earthquake struck Hodna Mountains, Algeria on February 12, 1946 at 02:43:24 UTC. It killed 264 people.
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 12, 1946
- Time
- 02:43:24 UTC
- Place
- Hodna Mountains, Algeria
- Magnitude
- 5.6 (Ms)
- Intensity
- IX, violent shaking, on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 35.750° N, 5.000° E
- Country
- Algeria
- Region
- Northern Africa
- USGS record
- The USGS’s page for this earthquake
The toll
- Deaths
- 264
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 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.
Feburary 12, 1946, epicenter 35 deg 45 min N, 4 deg 57 min E, magnitude 5.6, intensity VIII-IX, damage in the mountains of Hodna, 264 deaths. (reference #1201)
February 12, 1946, E. Algeria, 264 dead. (reference #1002)
February 12, 1946, 02:43:24 UTC, 35.75 N, 5 E, Northern Algeria. Destructive in Algeria, 264 persons reported killed. (reference #45)
Sources NCEI cites
The publications NCEI lists for this record. The numbers match the “reference #” notes in its account above.
- #1201 Rothe, J.P. (1970). Moyen-Orient et Afrique du Nord. Mission d'information seismologique, No de serie 1759, UNESCO, Paris, France, 45 p.
- #45 U.S. Department of the Interior, Geological Survey and U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (1928-1986). United States Earthquakes, Annual publication, published 1928-1986. vol.s for 1928-1965 issued by the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey; volumes for 1966-1969 issued by the National Earthquake Information Center; volume for 1970 issued by the National Geophysical Data Center; volumes for 1971-1972 issued by the National Geophysical And Solar-Terrestrial Data Center; volumes for 1973-1980 published jointly by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Geological Survey; volumes for 1981-1986 published by the U.S. Geological Survey. [on shelf]
- #1002 Lomnitz, Cinna (1974). Development in Geotectonics #5, Global Tectonics and Earthquake Risk, Elsevier Scientific Publishing Co., Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1974.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- May 21, 2003, Algiers, Boumerdes, Reghia, Thenia, Algeria
- February 21, 1960, Melouza, Algeria
- November 16, 1869, Biskra, Algeria
- December 3, 1885, M'Sila, Algeria
- June 24, 1910, Masqueray, Kabylia, Algeria
- May 27, 2003, Algiers, Boumerdes, Reghaia, Algeria
- August 22, 1856, Northern, Algeria
- October 27, 1985, Annaba-Setif-Souk, Algeria
- August 21, 1856, Northern, Algeria
- January 1, 1965, M'Sila, Algeria
- March 20, 2006, Northern, Algeria
- May 14, 2010, Beni Yellman, Northern, Algeria
- February 25, 1968, El Alen (Babord), Algeria
- July 11, 1975, Djebel Babor, Algeria
- April 16, 1943, Mansourah, Algeria
More
Significant earthquakes of 1946The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1946Recent 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 2026-10-01. NCEI earthquake 3819. The written accounts and the magnitude estimates are from the USGS earthquake catalog, event iscgem898245, matched to this record by time, place and magnitude.