December 16, 1963 Earthquake: Labuhan, Menes, Ponorogo, Java, Indonesia

Name: December 16, 1963 Earthquake: Labuhan, Menes, Ponorogo, Java, Indonesia
Start: 1963-12-16
Location: Labuhan, Menes, Ponorogo, Java, Indonesia

December 16, 1963 · M6.6

A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck Labuhan, Menes, Ponorogo, Java, Indonesia on December 16, 1963 at 01:51:31 UTC, 64 km below the surface. It caused a tsunami.

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 16, 1963
Time: 01:51:31 UTC
Place: Labuhan, Menes, Ponorogo, Java, Indonesia
Magnitude: 6.6 (Ms)
Focal depth: 64 km (40 mi)
Tsunami: Yes: the tsunami it caused
Epicenter: 6.400° S, 105.400° E
Country: Indonesia

The toll

Damage: Limited (under about $1 million)
Houses damaged: Few (about 1 to 50)

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 #414:

1963, December 16, 01:51:31 UTC. 6.4 S, 105.4 E, depth 64 km, magnitude 6.6 MS. There was an earthquake, which caused light destruction at Labuhan and Menes. A weak tsunami was reported from Labuhan.

Reference #1188:

1963, December 16, 02h 45m 35 UTC. 6.2 S, 105.4 E, magnitude 5, depth 55 km. Labuan: West Java - the earthquake caused slight damage in Ponorogo where cracks developed in walls. A large number of people felt the quake and its intensity was high enough to cause some panic among the people in Jakarta; however no damage was reported by this shock. The seismograph of the Meteorological Service was out of order. The shock was felt as far east as Tasikmalaya as Intensity II and as far west as Kotabumi in South Sumatera as Intensity II. The shock. was also felt in most places in Priangan as Intensity II-III.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1963 The 1900s Every quake the USGS located in 1963 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 6408.