Significant earthquakes of 2006

December 17, 2006 Earthquake: Northern, Muarasipongi, Sumatera, Indonesia

December 17, 2006 · M5.8 · 7 deaths · 680 houses destroyed

A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck Northern, Muarasipongi, Sumatera, Indonesia on December 17, 2006 at 21:39:17 UTC, 30 km below the surface. It killed 7 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
December 17, 2006
Time
21:39:17 UTC
Place
Northern, Muarasipongi, Sumatera, Indonesia
Magnitude
5.8 (Mw)
Focal depth
30 km (19 mi)
Tsunami
None recorded
Epicenter
0.626° N, 99.859° E
Country
Indonesia

The toll

Deaths
7
Injuries
100
Damage
Severe (about $5 to $25 million)
Houses destroyed
680

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.

Seven people

killed, 100 injured and more than 680 homes damaged or

destroyed in the Muarasipongi area. Landslides

reported in the Muarasipongi district. Felt (VI) at

Muarasipongi; (IV) at Aekgodang and Payakumbuh; (III)

at Airbangis, Duri, Mandailing, Padangpanjang and

Pekanbaru; (II) at Padang. Felt (II) at Kuala Lumpur,

Malaysia and in Singapore. Also felt at Johor Bahru

and Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. (reference #1053)

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

More

Significant earthquakes of 2006The 2000sEvery quake the USGS located in 2006Recent 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 7444.