April 20, 1991 Earthquake: Badakhstan, Kabul, Hindu Kush, Afghanistan

Date

April 20, 1991

Time

17:08:20 UTC

Place

Badakhstan, Kabul, Hindu Kush, Afghanistan

Magnitude

4.1 (mb)

Focal depth

33 km (21 mi)

Tsunami

None recorded

Epicenter

36.416° N, 70.912° E

Country

Afghanistan

Damage

Limited (under about $1 million)

Houses damaged

100

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.

• May 30, 1998, Badakhshan, Takhar, AfghanistanM6.6 · 4,700 deaths · $10 million · 105 km
• February 4, 1998, Dushanbe, Rostaq, Tajikistan, AfghanistanM5.9 · 2,323 deaths · 8,094 houses destroyed · 104 km
• August 31, 2025, Kunar, Nangarhar, AfghanistanM6 · 2,205 deaths · $180 million · 6,782 houses destroyed · 190 km
• March 25, 2002, Baghlan, Nahrin, Hindu Kush, AfghanistanM6.1 · 1,000 deaths · 1,500 houses destroyed · 149 km
• January 31, 1991, Badakhstan, Baghlan, Laghman, Nagarhar, AfghanistanM6.4 · 848 deaths · $36 million · 64 km
• December 16, 1982, Northeastern, AfghanistanM6.6 · 500 deaths · $1 million · 173 km
• October 26, 2015, Hindu Kush, AfghanistanM7.5 · 399 deaths · $109 million · 29,230 houses destroyed · 50 km
• March 3, 2002, Samanghan, Kabul, Rustaq, Hindu Kush, AfghanistanM7.4 · 166 deaths · 300 houses destroyed · 40 km
• June 11, 2012, Hindu Kush, AfghanistanM5.8 · 75 deaths · 143 houses destroyed · 147 km
• July 13, 1990, Pik Lenina, Hindu Kush, AfghanistanM5.6 · 43 deaths · 11 km
• December 30, 1983, Kabul, Samangan, Pakistan, Hindu Kush, AfghanistanM7.2 · 26 deaths · $3 million · 16 km
• March 21, 2023, Laghman, Pakistan, AfghanistanM6.5 · 19 deaths · 22 houses destroyed · 13 km
• March 19, 1997, Bajaur, Chitral, PakistanM4.9 · 15 deaths · 183 km
• April 3, 2026, Kabul, AfghanistanM5.8 · 12 deaths · 5 houses destroyed · 16 km
• June 24, 1972, Sarsangi, Narin Counties, Hindu Kush, AfghanistanM6.1 · 11 deaths · 111 km

Significant earthquakes of 1991The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1991Recent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history

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 5281.