Significant earthquakes of 1946

August 4, 1946 Earthquake: Northeastern Coast, Dominican Republic

August 4, 1946 · M7.9 · 1,790 deaths

A magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck Northeastern Coast, Dominican Republic on August 4, 1946 at 17:51:05 UTC, 15 km below the surface. It killed 1,790 people, counting the tsunami it caused.

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
August 4, 1946
Time
17:51:05 UTC
Place
Northeastern Coast, Dominican Republic
Magnitude
7.9 (Mw)
Focal depth
15 km (9 mi)
Epicenter
19.250° N, 69.000° W

The toll

Deaths
Few (about 1 to 50); 1,790 with its tsunami and other effects
Damage
Limited (under about $1 million); Severe (about $5 to $25 million) with its tsunami and other effects
Houses destroyed
Few (about 1 to 50); Many (101 to 1,000) with its tsunami and other effects

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.

A magnitude 8.1 earthquake devastated the Dominican Republic, extended into Haiti, and shook many other islands. This was one of the strongest earthquakes ever reported in the Caribbean. Lynch and Bodle (reference #251) suggest that the epicentral region was very extended. It originated 64 km offshore, northeast of the village of Julia Molina (now called Nagua) in the Mona Passage. The greatest destruction and loss was at Matancitas (Matanzas), Dominican Republic, where a 2.5 m tsunami came ashore, and 1,790 people died.

1946, August 4, 17:51:06 UTC. 19.25 N, 69 W, magnitude 8.1, a few persons were killed by collapsing buildings. (Reference #45)

1946, August 4, 17:51 UTC. 19.3 N, 68.9 W, magnitude 8.1 Ms. (Reference #537)

1946, August 4, 17:51:05 UTC. 19.25 N, 69 W, 7.9 Mw, 8.0 Ms. (reference #9910)

1946, August 4, 17:51:10.66 UTC. 19.083 N, 69.248 W, depth 15 km, magnitude 7.49 Mw. (reference #10476)

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

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 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 3828.