Significant earthquakes of 2023

February 9, 2023 Earthquake: Jayapura, Irian Jaya, New Guinea, Indonesia

February 9, 2023 · M5.1 · 4 deaths · 15 houses destroyed

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck Jayapura, Irian Jaya, New Guinea, Indonesia on February 9, 2023 at 06:28:00 UTC, 22 km below the surface. It killed 4 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
February 9, 2023
Time
06:28:00 UTC
Place
Jayapura, Irian Jaya, New Guinea, Indonesia
Magnitude
5.1 (Mw)
Focal depth
22 km (14 mi)
Intensity
8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
Tsunami
None recorded
Epicenter
2.635° S, 140.557° E
Country
Indonesia

The toll

Deaths
4
Damage
Limited (under about $1 million)
Houses destroyed
15
Houses damaged
28

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.

Reference #13445 lists four victims found in the rubble of the cafeteria building which was collapsed by the earthquake. The location of the cafeteria was above the waters in the Jayapura City area. 15 houses were heavily damaged, 1 house was moderately damaged and 28 houses were slightly damaged. In addition, 1 cafeteria collapsed and sank, 5 office buildings were damaged, the Jayapura City Hospital was damaged, 1 mosque, 2 churches, 1 hotel and 1 supermarket were also affected.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

More

Significant earthquakes of 2023The 2000sEvery quake the USGS located in 2023Recent 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 10664.