August 17, 1976 Earthquake: Mindanao, Philippines
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Mindanao, Philippines on August 17, 1976 at 04:19:27 UTC, 22 km below the surface.
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
- August 17, 1976
- Time
- 04:19:27 UTC
- Place
- Mindanao, Philippines
- Magnitude
- 6.8 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 22 km (14 mi)
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 7.249° N, 122.939° E
- Country
- Philippines
The toll
- Deaths
- Few (about 1 to 50)
- 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.
Additional casualties and damage (see earthquake on August 16, 1976 16 37 20.5 UTC).
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- August 16, 1976, S, Mindanao, Philippines
- March 31, 1955, Lanao,ozamiz,cotabato, Mindanao, Philippines
- December 19, 1928, Cotabato,n Coast of Illana Bay, Philippines
- March 5, 2002, Mindanao, Philippines
- September 21, 1897, Mindanao, Zamboanga, Sulu, Isabela, Philippines
- March 18, 1985, Pagadian, Zamboanga, Philippines
- August 21, 1902, Lanao, Cotabato, Mindanao, Philippines
- December 21, 1636, Illana Bay, Mindanao, Philippines
- July 23, 2010, Moro Gulf, Celebes Sea, Philippines
- August 24, 1874, Mindanao,zamboanga,isabela (Basilan), Philippines
- June 14, 1978, Mindanao Island, Philippines
- July 23, 1885, Dapitan, NE Mindanao, Philippines
- December 8, 1871, Cotabato,polloc Harbor, W Mindanao, Philippines
- March 2, 1923, Mindanao Island, Philippines
- September 20, 1897, Dapitan, NW Mindanao, Philippines
More
Significant earthquakes of 1976The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1976Recent 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 7362.