October 16, 1987 Earthquake: Kandrian, Kimbte, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Kandrian, Kimbte, New Britain, Papua New Guinea on October 16, 1987 at 20:48:01 UTC, 48 km below the surface. It caused a tsunami.
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
- October 16, 1987
- Time
- 20:48:01 UTC
- Place
- Kandrian, Kimbte, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- Magnitude
- 7.7 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 48 km (30 mi)
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 6.266° S, 149.060° E
- Country
- Papua New Guinea
The toll
- 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.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
1987, October 16, 20:48:01.6. Damage (VIII) at Kondrian. Felt (V) at Kimbe and Moskins, (IV) at Bialla and (III) at Rabaul. Felt (V) at Finschhafen and also felt at Port Moresby, New Guinea. Felt (IV) on Bougainville. Local tsunami generated with 30 meter runup reported at Kandrian. Thirteen cm tsunami recorded at Rabaul. Multiple event. (reference #1053)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- April 1, 2002, Morobe, Papua New Guinea
- February 8, 1987, Huon Peninsula, Umboi Island, Papua New Guinea
- July 5, 1988, Kandrian, Arawe, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- May 6, 1947, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- September 14, 1906, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- February 2, 1920, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- December 28, 1945, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- May 12, 1938, Papua New Guinea
- October 11, 1913, Papua New Guinea
- July 18, 2010, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
- October 19, 1899, Bismrack Sea, Papua New Guinea
- September 17, 1900, Rabaul Harbor, Papua New Guinea
- November 17, 1964, New Britain, Papua New Guinea
More
Significant earthquakes of 1987The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1987Recent 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 5147.