December 4, 1946 Earthquake: Taiwan
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Taiwan on December 4, 1946 at 22:47:39 UTC. It killed 58 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
- December 4, 1946
- Time
- 22:47:39 UTC
- Place
- Taiwan
- Magnitude
- 6.8 (Ms)
- Intensity
- 9 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 23.100° N, 120.300° E
- Country
- Taiwan
The toll
- Deaths
- 58
- Injuries
- 384
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
- Houses destroyed
- 700
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.
December 5, 1946, 06:47:39 local time, Near Tainan, Taiwan Province. magnitude 6.75, intensity IX.
In Yongkong, Xinhua and Xinshi villages double track rails were wrenched or arched up 1 m. 2 bridges were destroyed, 11 high-voltage wire poles and many reinforced concrete telephone poles were broken. Running water tubes were broken. More than 700 houses were devastated completely, the remaining houses were damaged seriously
or slightly at 10,700 places. Highways sunk at 2 sections. The fields were full of humps and holes, with ejection of mud. 58 persons were killed, and 84 were seriously wounded. About 300 persons were wounded slightly.
Felt slightly in Taizhong.
(above from reference #3939)
53 deaths and moderate damage. (reference #45)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- May 22, 1782, Tainan, Taiwan
- April 20, 1935, Mialoi, Taiwan
- July 16, 1935, Xiinzhu, Taiwan
- September 20, 1999, Nantou, Taichung, Taizhong, Taiwan
- 1721, Tainan, Taiwan
- June 6, 1862, Tainan, Taiwan
- March 16, 1906, Jiayi, Taiwan
- December 3, 1848, Zhanghua, Taiwan
- February 1845, Zhanghua, Taiwan
- December 16, 1941, Taiwan
- January 30, 1736, Tainan, Taiwan
- August 9, 1792, Jiayi, Tainan, Taiwan
- August 28, 1916, Taiwan
- November 5, 1904, Jiayi, Taiwan
- June 27, 1839, Jiayi, Taiwan
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 3841.