April 18, 1968 Earthquake: Liguria, Italy
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck Liguria, Italy on April 18, 1968 at 19:38:15 UTC, 7 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
- April 18, 1968
- Time
- 19:38:15 UTC
- Place
- Liguria, Italy
- Magnitude
- 4.6 (Mw)
- Focal depth
- 7 km (4 mi)
- Intensity
- 6 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 44.080° N, 8.000° E
- Country
- Italy
The toll
The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this earthquake.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
1968, April 18, 19:38 UTC. 44.1 N, 8 E, magnitude 4.1 mb, depth 7 km. Ligurian Appennines; felt on the Italian coast at Alassio, Imperia, San Remo, Ventimiglia; in France, intensity IV at Menton, III at Monaco, II at Nice. A series of seventy other tremors was felt near Albenga on 6 and 7 September. Several destructive earthquakes occurred in Liguria in the nineteenth century; those of 1968 show that this region is still active. (reference #1039)
1968, April 18 1938 UTC. Diano Marina 44.2 N, 8.3 E. Intensity VI. (reference #1075)
1968, April 18, 19:38:18 UTC. 44.31 N, 8.070 E, magnitude 4.51 Mw. (reference 11456)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- September 7, 1920, Carrara,garfagnana, Italy
- July 20, 1564, Corsica,la Bollene-Vesubie,venanson, France
- February 23, 1887, Ligurian Coast, Italy
- February 15, 1644, Corsica,belvedere,roquebilliere, France
- February 14, 1834, Borgo Val Di Taro, Italy
- October 9, 1828, Pavia, Italy
- February 13, 1991, France
- April 11, 1837, Italy
- May 26, 1831, Coast of Liguria, Italy
- April 2, 1808, Valley of Pellice, Chisone, Italy
- July 15, 1971, Parma, Italy
- February 23, 1818, Vence, Grasse, Nice, Liguria, France, Italy
- December 29, 1854, Cagnes, Bar, St Paul, Grasse, Menton, Nice, France
- October 16, 1896, Ligurian Coast, Italy
- 217 BC, Liguria (Ligurie), Gaule, Italy
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 9992.