Significant earthquakes of 2012

July 25, 2012 Earthquake: Banda Aceh, Indonesia

July 25, 2012 · M6.5 · 1 death

A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Banda Aceh, Indonesia on July 25, 2012 at 00:27:45 UTC, 22 km below the surface. It killed 1 person.

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
July 25, 2012
Time
00:27:45 UTC
Place
Banda Aceh, Indonesia
Magnitude
6.5 (Mw)
Focal depth
22 km (14 mi)
Tsunami
None recorded
Epicenter
2.707° N, 96.045° E
Country
Indonesia

The toll

Deaths
1
Damage
Limited (under about $1 million)
Houses damaged
20

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.

Felt (IV) on Pulau Simeulue. Felt

(III) at Banda Aceh, Sumatra. Also felt at Medan. Felt

at Butterworth, Malaysia. (reference #1053)

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia - A powerful earthquake jolted western Indonesia early Wednesday, killing a man and sending panicked residents fleeing from homes in towns and villages across Sumatra island's northern tip. No tsunami was generated. The magnitude 6.4 quake hit about 7:30 a.m. (0030 GMT) and was centered 28 kilometers (17 miles) northwest of Aceh province's Sinabang town at a depth of 45 kilometers (28 miles), according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Sutopo Purwo Nugroho from the National Disaster Management Agency said a 70-year-old man who was suffering from hypertension died as he fled in panic and fell down, but there were no other casualties reported. Twenty buildings were damaged, including mosques, public health centers, schools and local government offices, the agency said. (reference #9916)

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

More

Significant earthquakes of 2012The 2000sEvery quake the USGS located in 2012Recent 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 9951.