August 8, 2002 Earthquake: Rulong, Sichuan Province, China
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Rulong, Sichuan Province, China on August 8, 2002 at 11:42:05 UTC, 33 km below the surface.
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
- August 8, 2002
- Time
- 11:42:05 UTC
- Place
- Rulong, Sichuan Province, China
- Magnitude
- 5.3 (Mw)
- Focal depth
- 33 km (21 mi)
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 30.916° N, 99.927° E
- Country
- China
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 million)
- Houses destroyed
- 8
- Houses damaged
- 8
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.
Eight houses destroyed and 66 damaged in Rulong County. (reference #1053)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- March 24, 1923, Sichuan Province, China
- December 8, 1816, Sichuan Province, China
- April 11, 1870, Batang, Sichuan Province, China
- May 25, 1948, Sichuan Province, China
- September 27, 1811, E. of Ganze, Sichuan Province, China
- August 30, 1904, Sichuan Province, China
- August 29, 1893, Sichuan Province, China
- September 7, 1792, N of Qianning, Sichuan Province, China
- August 24, 1930, Sichuan Province, China
- May 15, 1793, Near Qianning, Sichuan Province, China
- January 23, 1981, Sichuan Province, China
- April 15, 1989, Batang, Sichuan Province, China
- June 15, 1982, Garze, Sichuan Province, China
- August 30, 1748, Sichuan Province, China
- November 22, 2014, Garze, Sichuan Province, China
More
Significant earthquakes of 2002The 2000sEvery quake the USGS located in 2002Recent 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 5642.