May 10, 1985 Earthquake: Bialla, Piona, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck Bialla, Piona, New Britain, Papua New Guinea on May 10, 1985 at 15:35:50 UTC, 27 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
- May 10, 1985
- Time
- 15:35:50 UTC
- Place
- Bialla, Piona, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- Magnitude
- 7.1 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 27 km (17 mi)
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 5.599° S, 151.045° E
- Country
- Papua New Guinea
The toll
- Deaths
- 1
- Damage
- $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.
Reference #1053 lists earthquake on May 10, 1985. One person killed. Damage (VIII) in the Biala-Haskins area.
Reference #1250 lists earthquake on May 11, 1985, $1 million damage. [probably describing earthquake on May 10]
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- May 28, 1937, Keravia, Rabaul, Kokopo, Papua New Guinea
- December 22, 1983, Ulawun, Rabaul, Papua New Guinea
- January 13, 1941, Bismarck Sea, Papua New Guinea
- November 17, 1964, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- December 30, 1990, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- July 18, 2010, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- December 12, 1933, Papua New Guinea
- November 17, 2000, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- May 5, 2015, Papua New Guinea
- March 29, 2018, Khatlon, Tajikistan
- December 28, 1945, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- February 2, 1920, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- January 1, 1916, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea
- March 29, 2015, Papua New Guinea
More
Significant earthquakes of 1985The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1985Recent 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 5068.