November 6, 1983 Earthquake: E, Heze-Dongming, Shandong Province, China
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck E, Heze-Dongming, Shandong Province, China on November 6, 1983 at 21:09:45 UTC, 19 km below the surface. It killed 34 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
- November 6, 1983
- Time
- 21:09:45 UTC
- Place
- E, Heze-Dongming, Shandong Province, China
- Magnitude
- 5.3 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 19 km (12 mi)
- Intensity
- 7 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 35.206° N, 115.213° E
- Country
- China
The toll
- Deaths
- 34
- Injuries
- 2,200
- Damage
- $5 million
- Houses destroyed
- 3,300
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.
34 people killed, about 2,200 injured and about 3,300 houses destroyed in the Heze-Dongming area of Shandong Province. Also felt in parts of Hebei and Henan provinces. (reference #1053)
Intensity VII (reference #1268)
34 people killed (reference #1250).
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
More
Significant earthquakes of 1983The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1983Recent 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 5002.