Significant earthquakes of 1970

March 14, 1970 Earthquake: Badalan,qeris,batchi,dizeh,pesak,hesar, Iran

March 14, 1970 · M4.8 · 5 deaths

A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck Badalan,qeris,batchi,dizeh,pesak,hesar, Iran on March 14, 1970 at 01:51:44 UTC, 23 km below the surface. It killed 5 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
March 14, 1970
Time
01:51:44 UTC
Place
Badalan,qeris,batchi,dizeh,pesak,hesar, Iran
Magnitude
4.8 (Ms)
Focal depth
23 km (14 mi)
Tsunami
None recorded
Epicenter
38.600° N, 44.700° E
Country
Iran

The toll

Deaths
5
Damage
Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
Houses destroyed
Many (101 to 1,000)

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 14, 1970, 01:51:44.4 UTC, Turkey-Iran border region, 38.6 N, 44.7 E, depth 23 km, magnitude 4.8 Ms. Five killed at Baulan. Two other villages destroyed, 300 homeless. (reference #45)

March 14, 1970, 01:51 UTC, 38.6 N, 44.7 E, depth 23 km, magnitude 5.3 mb, 5.2 Ms. Widely felt in Turkey and Iran; 5 persons killed at Badlan (Iranian Azarbaijan); buildings destroyed at Badlan, Badalabad and Safok, damage at Khvoy; felt at Jolfa, Alamdor, Gugard, Shahpur, Maku and Bazargan.

(reference #1039)

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

More

Significant earthquakes of 1970The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1970Recent 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 4520.