September 15, 1985 Earthquake: Enarotali, Irian Jaya, New Guinea, Indonesia

Name: September 15, 1985 Earthquake: Enarotali, Irian Jaya, New Guinea, Indonesia
Start: 1985-09-15
Location: Enarotali, Irian Jaya, New Guinea, Indonesia

September 15, 1985 · M6.3 · 10 deaths

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck Enarotali, Irian Jaya, New Guinea, Indonesia on September 15, 1985 at 02:42:54 UTC, 10 km below the surface. It killed 10 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: September 15, 1985
Time: 02:42:54 UTC
Place: Enarotali, Irian Jaya, New Guinea, Indonesia
Magnitude: 6.3 (Ms)
Focal depth: 10 km (6 mi)
Tsunami: None recorded
Epicenter: 4.130° S, 136.049° E
Country: Indonesia

The toll

Deaths: 10
Injuries: 7
Damage: Moderate (about $1 to $5 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.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1985 The 1900s Every quake the USGS located in 1985 Recent earthquakes near here This 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 5074.