February 11, 1999 Earthquake: Lowgar, Vardak, Kabul, Afghanistan
A magnitude 6 earthquake struck Lowgar, Vardak, Kabul, Afghanistan on February 11, 1999 at 14:08:51 UTC, 33 km below the surface. It killed 70 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
- February 11, 1999
- Time
- 14:08:51 UTC
- Place
- Lowgar, Vardak, Kabul, Afghanistan
- Magnitude
- 6 (Mw)
- Focal depth
- 33 km (21 mi)
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 34.259° N, 69.364° E
- Country
- Afghanistan
The toll
- Deaths
- 70
- Injuries
- 500
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million)
- Houses destroyed
- 7,000
- Houses damaged
- 7,000
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.
Seventy people killed, 500 injured, at least 14,000 homeless and 7,000 houses destroyed in Lowgar and Vardak Provinces. Several people injured at Kabul. Felt at Islamabad and Peshawar, Pakistan. (reference #1053)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- August 31, 2025, Kunar, Nangarhar, Afghanistan
- June 21, 2022, Paktika Province, Pakistan, Afghanistan
- February 19, 1842, Jalalabad, Afghanistan
- June 9, 1956, Kabul, Afghanistan
- June 11, 2012, Hindu Kush, Afghanistan
- April 16, 2009, Nangarhar, Afghanistan
- April 24, 2013, Kama, Afghanistan
- October 25, 1990, Chitral, Mardan, Malakand, Hindu Kush, Afghanistan
- September 4, 2022, Kunar, Laghman, Nangarhar, Afghanistan
- June 1, 2001, Parvan, Hindu Kush, Afghanistan
- July 18, 2004, Paktia Province, Afghanistan
- February 1, 1984, Khorog, Jalalabad, Pakistan, Afghanistan
- July 6, 1505, Kabul, Afghanistan
- October 18, 1874, Afghanistan
- July 18, 2022, Hawst, Paktiya, Afghanistan
More
Significant earthquakes of 1999The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1999Recent 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 5516.