January 22, 1989 Earthquake: Sharora, Gissar, Tajikistan
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Sharora, Gissar, Tajikistan on January 22, 1989 at 23:02:07 UTC, 33 km below the surface. It killed 274 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
- January 22, 1989
- Time
- 23:02:07 UTC
- Place
- Sharora, Gissar, Tajikistan
- Magnitude
- 5.3 (mb)
- Focal depth
- 33 km (21 mi)
- Intensity
- 7 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 38.465° N, 68.694° E
- Country
- Tajikistan
The toll
- Deaths
- 274
- Injuries
- Many (about 101 to 1,000)
- Damage
- $24.8 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.
Two hundred seventy-four people killed, many injured, extensive damage (VII) and mudslides in the Gissor area. Nearly all the casualties were caused by mudslides which buried Sharora and two nearby villages. Felt (VI) at Gulkhani and Sarkishti; (V) at Dushanbe and Tursunzade; ( IV) at Denau and Nurek.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- October 21, 1907, Karatag, Tajikistan
- May 30, 1998, Badakhshan, Takhar, Afghanistan
- July 10, 1949, Tajikistan
- February 4, 1998, Dushanbe, Rostaq, Tajikistan, Afghanistan
- September 22, 1930, Dushanbe (Stalinabad), Tajikistan
- April 12, 2002, Do Abi-Nahrin, Tajikistan, Afghanistan
- July 21, 2007, Rasht, Asht, Tajikistan
- July 10, 2021, Rasht, Tojikobod, Tajikistan
- January 9, 2002, Roghun, Tajikistan
- July 29, 2006, Panj-Qumsangir, Tajikistan
- May 12, 2012, Tajikistan
- April 13, 2025, Rasht, Tajikistan
- November 10, 2013, Vahdat, Tajikistan
- August 18, 2006, Dushanbe (Stalinabad), Tajikistan
- February 3, 2002, Roghun, Tajikistan
More
Significant earthquakes of 1989The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1989Recent 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 5187.