June 27, 1966 Earthquake: Nepal-India

Name: June 27, 1966 Earthquake: Nepal-India
Start: 1966-06-27
Location: Nepal-India

June 27, 1966 · M6.3 · 80 deaths · $1 million · 5,200 houses destroyed

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck Nepal-India on June 27, 1966 at 10:41:09 UTC, 23 km below the surface. It killed 80 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: June 27, 1966
Time: 10:41:09 UTC
Place: Nepal-India
Magnitude: 6.3 (Ms)
Focal depth: 23 km (14 mi)
Intensity: 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
Tsunami: None recorded
Epicenter: 29.554° N, 80.854° E
Country: Nepal

The toll

Deaths: 80
Injuries: 100
Damage: $1 million
Houses destroyed: 5,200

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.

1966, June 27. Nepal, India. 80 killed, 100 injured, $1 million. (reference #1250)

1966, June 27, 10:41 UTC. 29.7 N, 80.9 E, magnitude 6.1 mb, 6.3 MS, depth 37 km. Six earthquakes of magnitude m equal to or greater than 5.3 affected the frontier region

between India and Nepal, east of Moradabad. The strongest, which occurred on 27 June at 10041 h, caused 80 deaths, with numerous injured and serious damage at Baitadi, Dharchula and Shainpur (Nepal); more than 5,200 houses were destroyed and 20,000 people were left homeless; there were some aftershocks on the same and the following day. The main shocks were widely felt in India; intensity VIII was observed at Mukteswar and Naini Tal; some houses were damaged in Delhi, Ambala and Naini Tal; at Ambala, the roof of the Post Office building collapsed; at Moradabad, several old houses were destroyed.(reference #1039)

1966, June 27, 10:41:08.6 UTC. 29.7 N, 80.9 E, depth 37 km, magnitude 5.75. Nepal-India border. Due to the dense population and weak building construction in the epicentral area, 80 persons were killed and 5,000 houses were destroyed. Widespread destruction was reported at Baitadi, Darchula, and Chainpur, Nepal. The remoteness of the region was a great obstacle to relief operations. (reference #45)

1966, June 27, 10:41 UTC. 29.554 N, 80.854 E, depth 22.7 km, magnitude 6.0 mb. (reference #9910)

1966, June 27, 10:41:09.05 UTC. 29.504 N, 80.845 E, depth 25.9 km, magnitude 6. (reference #10476)

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1966 The 1900s Every quake the USGS located in 1966 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 4369.