September 5, 2004 Earthquake: Kyoto, Wakayama, Sakai, W Coast, Honshu, Japan
A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck Kyoto, Wakayama, Sakai, W Coast, Honshu, Japan on September 5, 2004 at 14:57:18 UTC, 10 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
- September 5, 2004
- Time
- 14:57:18 UTC
- Place
- Kyoto, Wakayama, Sakai, W Coast, Honshu, Japan
- Magnitude
- 7.4 (Mw)
- Focal depth
- 10 km (6 mi)
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 33.184° N, 137.071° E
- Country
- Japan
The toll
- Injuries
- 40
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 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.
About forty people injured in the Kyoto area. Felt in much of
southwestern Japan and as far northeast as Tokyo.
A local tsunami was generated with maximum recorded wave
heights (peak-to-trough) of 93 cm on Kozu-shima and 86
cm at Kushimoto. Power outages occured at Wakayama and
a fire occurred at Sakai. (reference #1053)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- September 20, 1498, Enshunada Sea, Japan
- December 24, 1854, Nankaido, Japan
- January 12, 1945, S, Honshu, Japan
- October 28, 1707, Enshunada, Japan
- December 20, 1946, S Coast, Honshu, Japan
- December 7, 1944, Off Southeast Coast Kii Peninsula, Japan
- February 3, 1605, Enshunada, Japan
- December 23, 1854, Enshunada Sea, Japan
- August 3, 1361, Nankaido, Japan
- December 17, 1096, Enshunada, Japan
- September 5, 2004, Kyoto, W Coast, Honshu, Japan
- January 21, 1408, Kumanonada, Japan
- August 2, 704, Kumanonada, Japan
- 922, Kumanonada, Japan
- December 1403, Kumanonada, Japan
More
Significant earthquakes of 2004The 2000sEvery quake the USGS located in 2004Recent 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 5799.