May 17, 2014 Earthquake: Hesse, Germany

Name: May 17, 2014 Earthquake: Hesse, Germany
Start: 2014-05-17
Location: Hesse, Germany

May 17, 2014 · M3.6 · $1.4 million

A magnitude 3.6 earthquake struck Hesse, Germany on May 17, 2014 at 16:46:27 UTC, 10 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: May 17, 2014
Time: 16:46:27 UTC
Place: Hesse, Germany
Magnitude: 3.6 (Mw)
Focal depth: 10 km (6 mi)
Intensity: 5 on the Modified Mercalli scale
Tsunami: None recorded
Epicenter: 49.793° N, 8.632° E
Country: Germany

The toll

Damage: $1.4 million
Houses damaged: 70

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) at Rossdorf. Also felt at Eimsheim, Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Munster, Pfungstadt and Weiterstadt. (reference #13456)

Around 70 houses were damaged in central Germany on Saturday evening when the strongest earthquake for 20 years hit the state of Hesse. The earthquake at 6.46pm was registered as 4.2 on the Richter scale and was the second in the last few weeks to hit south Hesse. "The strength is considerable for our area," said Matthias Kracht from the seismological service. On Sunday the fire service was still securing homes and inspecting cracks in walls in Nieder-Beerbach. All but one family was able to return to their home on Saturday night and nobody was injured, but the damage to the homes was estimated at around 1 million [$1.36 million]. The area was also hit by an earthquake at the end of March which was 3.2 on the Richter scale. (reference #10989)

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 2014 The 2000s Every quake the USGS located in 2014 Recent earthquakes near here This 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 10099.