September 12, 1955 Earthquake: Nile Delta, Egypt

Name: September 12, 1955 Earthquake: Nile Delta, Egypt
Start: 1955-09-12
Location: Nile Delta, Egypt

September 12, 1955 · M6.3 · 22 deaths

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck Nile Delta, Egypt on September 12, 1955 at 06:09:20 UTC. It killed 22 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: September 12, 1955
Time: 06:09:20 UTC
Place: Nile Delta, Egypt
Magnitude: 6.3 (Ms)
Tsunami: None recorded
Epicenter: 32.200° N, 29.600° E
Country: Egypt

The toll

Deaths: 22
Injuries: 12
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.

September 12, 1955, 06:09:20 UTC, 32.5 N, 30 E, Off coast of Egypt, magnitude 6.5. 20 killed, many injured, and extensive property damage in the Nile Delta area. Also felt in Cyprus, Greece, Palestine, and Syria. (reference #45)

September, 12 1955, 06:09 UTC, Nile Delta, 32.2 N, 29.6 E, magnitude 6.3, 18 deaths. (reference #1138)

September 12, 1955, 06:09:24 UTC, 32.3 N, 29.6 E, magnitude 6.7. This earthquake, which had its origin in the south-eastern Mediterranean, caused loss of life in Egypt (22 killed and damage in the Nile Delta between Alexandria and Cairo). At Alexandria there were 12 injured in a school, when the staircase under which the children had rushed for shelter collapsed (press report). Felt throughout the eastern Mediterranean basin, in Palestine, Cyprus, Crete, the Dodecanese and as far as Athens. (reference #1040)

Significant earthquakes of 1955 The 1900s Every quake the USGS located in 1955 Recent earthquakes near here This 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 4083.