March 20, 1968 Earthquake: Homa Bay, Usiri, Got Kokech, Kenya
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck Homa Bay, Usiri, Got Kokech, Kenya on March 20, 1968 at 19:02:50 UTC, 33 km below the surface. It killed 1 person.
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
- March 20, 1968
- Time
- 19:02:50 UTC
- Place
- Homa Bay, Usiri, Got Kokech, Kenya
- Magnitude
- 4.6 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 33 km (21 mi)
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 0.600° S, 34.400° E
- Country
- Kenya
The toll
- Deaths
- 1
- Injuries
- 1
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 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.
March 20, 1968, 19:02:50.3 UTC, 0.6 S, 34.4 E, depth 33 km, magnitude 4.6, recorded in Nairobi, Entebbe and Addis Ababa.
Homa Bay, intensity VI, small tremor at 9:15 a.m. accompanied by a rumble. Violent and prolonged tremor (VI) at 10:05 p.m. lasting 7 seconds and sounding like a crack and rumble. Doors and windows rattled. crockery and glasses clinked. A few objects thrown off shelves. Cracks in walls of buildings in the township and surrounding district at Usiri and Got Kokech, where a water tank was also cracked. 2 small tremors followed.
Rusinga Island, intensity VI, sharp shock at 10 p.m., followed by several slight tremors. Houses shook and a few old houses collapsed. One person killed and another injured at Kamasengro near Gomba Hill. People frightened and slept out. Hanging objects swang. Crockery rattled, some falling on the floor. Old trees fell down. Cracks in walls in several houses.
(above from reference #1236)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
More
Significant earthquakes of 1968The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1968Recent 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 8187.