October 31, 1956 Earthquake: Bastak, Iran
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck Bastak, Iran on October 31, 1956 at 14:03:47 UTC, 15 km below the surface. It killed 410 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
- October 31, 1956
- Time
- 14:03:47 UTC
- Place
- Bastak, Iran
- Magnitude
- 6.4 (Mw)
- Focal depth
- 15 km (9 mi)
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 27.407° N, 54.462° E
- Country
- Iran
The toll
- Deaths
- 410
- Damage
- $2.8 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.
Reference #1138 lists magnitude 6.8 and 347 deaths.
Reference #12864 lists magnitude 6.2 Ms and 410 deaths, 14 villages destroyed and 2.8 million in direct economic loss.
Reference #45 lists 350 killed, many injured, and extensive damage in Bastak, Laristan. Magnitude 6.75.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- January 11, 1897, Qeshm Island, Larak Island, Iran
- April 24, 1960, Lar, Iran
- May 19, 1884, Qeshm I,bandar-E-Laft,saheli,tonban,direstan, Iran
- March 21, 1977, Bandar Abbas, Iran
- August 1880, Bastak, Jonah, Iran
- June 11, 1961, Dehkuyeh,khaneh,lar,shagheb,nokhriz,bighu, Iran
- January 19, 1950, Bushire, Iran
- November 6, 1990, S, Darab, Iran
- January 15, 1953, Lar, Iran
- November 27, 2005, Qeshm, Zirang
- March 24, 1913, Teyhan, Iran
- July 9, 1902, Qeshm,bandar Abbas,genu, Qeshm Island, Iran
- September 10, 2008, Hormozgan Province, Iran
- March 7, 1975, Sarkhun,qaleh Qazi,qadhad,nong-E-Bala, Iran
- November 13, 1998, Bigherd-Khonj, Southern, Iran
More
Significant earthquakes of 1956The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1956Recent 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 4107.