List of earthquakes in 1945

Earthquakes in 1945

Approximate epicenters of the earthquakes in 1945 5.0−5.9 magnitude 6.0−6.9 magnitude 7.0−7.9 magnitude 8.0+ magnitude
Strongest magnitude	off the coast of Pakistan (Magnitude 8.1) November 27
Deadliest	off the coast of Pakistan (Magnitude 8.1) November 27 4,000 deaths
Total fatalities	6,955
Number by magnitude
9.0+	0
8.0−8.9	1
7.0−7.9	14
6.0−6.9	51
5.0−5.9	0
← 1944 1946 →

This is a list of earthquakes in 1945. Only magnitude 6.0 or greater earthquakes appear on the list. Lower magnitude events are included if they have caused death, injury or damage. All dates are listed according to UTC time. The last year of World War II was dominated by two events which caused the vast bulk of the death toll. In January, over 2,300 were killed by a large magnitude 6.6 quake in Japan. In November, a magnitude 8.1 quake caused a devastating tsunami leading to 4,000 deaths in Pakistan. Turkey again experienced tragedy. In terms of large events, the western Pacific Ocean had the lion's share of the activity. Japan, Papua New Guinea, and the southwest Pacific Islands saw several events with a magnitude over 7.0.

Overall

By death toll

Rank	Death toll	Magnitude	Location	Depth (km)	Date
1	4,000	8.1	off the coast of Pakistan	15.0	November 27
2	2,306	6.6	Aichi Prefecture, Honshu, Japan	10.0	January 12
3	300	6.0	Adana Province, Turkey	60.0	March 20
3	300	0.0	west of Van, Turkey	0.0	July 29
4	20	0.0	Semnan Province, Iran	0.0	May 11
5	17	6.2	Hebei Province, China	35.0	September 23

• Note: At least 10 casualties

By magnitude

Rank	Magnitude	Death toll	Location	Depth (km)	Date
1	8.1	4,000	off the coast of Pakistan	15.0	November 27
2	7.8	0	West New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea	35.0	December 28
3	7.5	0	off the south coast of South Island, New Zealand	20.0	September 1
4	7.2	0	southeast of the Loyalty Islands	60.0	February 1
4	7.2	0	off the northeast coast of Honshu, Japan	58.7	February 10
4	7.2	0	Volcano Islands, Japan	15.0	February 26
4	7.2	0	off the east coast of Honshu, Japan	50.0	March 11
5	7.1	0	Northern Mariana Islands	120.0	July 15
5	7.1	0	Santiago Metropolitan Region, Chile	100.0	September 13
6	7.0	0	southeast of the Loyalty Islands	60.0	February 1
6	7.0	0	off the east coast of Kamchatka, Russia	35.0	April 15
6	7.0	0	Chiriqui Province, Panama	80.0	June 3
6	7.0	0	off the east coast of Hokkaido, Japan	120.0	June 22
6	7.0	0	Bismarck Sea, Papua New Guinea	50.0	September 22
6	7.0	0	Fiji	600.0	November 26

• Note: At least 7.0 magnitude

Notable events

January

• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Baffin Bay, Canada on January 1 at a depth of 35.0 km.^[1]
• A catastrophic magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck Aichi Prefecture, Honshu, Japan on January 12 at a depth of 10.0 km. Slightly more than twenty-three hundred people died, and a further 896 injured, along with 7,221 destroyed homes.^[2][3]
• A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck Espaillat Province, Dominican Republic on January 22 at a depth of 35.0 km.^[4]

February

• A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck southeast of the Loyalty Islands on February 1 at a depth of 60.0 km.^[5]
• A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck southeast of the Loyalty Islands on February 1 at a depth of 60.0 km. This came one hour and 38 minutes after the previous event. This can be classed as a doublet earthquake.^[6]
• A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck off the northeast coast of Honshu, Japan on February 10 at a depth of 58.7 km.^[7]
• A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck central Idaho on February 14 at an unknown depth.^[8]
• A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the northeast coast of Honshu, Japan on February 18 at a depth of 22.5 km.^[9]
• A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck the Volcano Islands, Japan on February 26 at a depth of 15.0 km.^[10]

March

• A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck southeast of Mindanao, Philippines on March 11 at a depth of 100.0 km.^[11]
• A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck off the east coast of Honshu, Japan on March 11 at a depth of 50.0 km.^[12]
• A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck off the west coast of Colombia on March 17 at an unknown depth.^[13]
• A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck Central Region, Uganda on March 18 at a depth of 35.0 km. Five people were killed and some damage was caused.^[14][15]
• A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck Adana Province, Turkey on March 20 at a depth of 60.0 km. Three-hundred people were killed.^[16]
• A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck the Southern Ocean south of New Zealand on March 23 at a depth of 10.0 km.^[17]

April

• A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off the east coast of Kamchatka, Russia on April 15 at a depth of 35.0 km.^[18]
• A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck off the east coast of Kamchatka, Russia on April 15 at a depth of 35.0 km. This happened an hour and six minutes after the previous mainshock.^[19]
• A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck the Mid-Indian Ridge on April 18 at a depth of 10.0 km.^[20]
• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck southeast of the Loyalty Islands on April 19 at a depth of 35.0 km.^[21]
• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck the State of Mexico, Mexico on April 21 at a depth of 100.0 km.^[22]
• , A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck the Celebes Sea on April 22 at a depth of 650.0 km.^[23]
• A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck New Ireland (island), Papua New Guinea on April 23 at a depth of 160.0 km.^[24]

May

• A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck the far western Banda Sea, Indonesia on May 9 at a depth of 550.0 km.^[25]
• An earthquake struck Semnan Province, Iran on May 11. The magnitude and depth were unknown. Twenty people died and heavy damage was caused.^[26]
• A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck off the coast of northern California on May 19 at a depth of 10.0 km.^[27]

June

• A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck the central Mid-Atlantic Ridge on June 1 at a depth of 35.0 km.^[28]
• A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Chiriqui Province, Panama on June 3 at a depth of 80.0 km.^[29]
• A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck Uttarakhand, India on June 4 at a depth of 15.0 km.^[30]
• An earthquake struck Van Province, Turkey on June 21. The magnitude and depth were unknown. Some damage was reported.^[31]
• A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck off the east coast of Hokkaido. Japan on June 22 at a depth of 120.0 km.^[32]
• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Himachal Pradesh, India on June 22 at a depth of 20.0 km.^[33]
• A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck the Gulf of California, Mexico on June 27 at a depth of 10.0 km.^[34]
• A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck the eastern Pacific Ocean on June 30 at a depth of 10.0 km.^[35]

July

• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Cauca Department, Colombia on July 9 at a depth of 100.0 km.^[36]
• A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck the Northern Mariana Islands on July 15 at a depth of 120.0 km.^[37]
• A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck northern Sumatra, Indonesia on July 23 at a depth of 15.0 km.^[38]
• An earthquake struck just west of the city of Van, Turkey on July 29. The magnitude and depth were unknown. Three-hundred people were killed and major damage was caused.^[39]

August

• A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck off the east coast of Taiwan on August 1 at a depth of 14.0 km.^[40]
• A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck northern Haida Gwaii, Canada on August 2 at a depth of 35.0 km.^[41]
• A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck the Andaman Islands, India on August 8 at a depth of 20.0 km.^[42]
• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck the Ryukyu Islands, Japan on August 14 at a depth of 15.0 km.^[43]
• A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Pasco Region, Peru on August 21 at a depth of 120.0 km.^[44]
• A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck Vanuatu on August 29 at a depth of 20.0 km.^[45]

September

• A magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck off the south coast of South Island, New Zealand on September 1 at a depth of 20.0 km.^[46]
• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck the eastern Mediterranean Sea on September 2 at a depth of 80.0 km.^[47]
• A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck south of New Ireland (island), Papua New Guinea on September 5 at a depth of 45.0 km.^[48]
• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Vrancea County, Romania on September 7 at a depth of 100.0 km.^[49]
• A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck Vanuatu on September 9 at a depth of 35.0 km.^[50]
• A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck Sangha Department (Republic of the Congo) on September 12 at a depth of 35.0 km. Some damage was caused. This was an unusually strong quake for the area.^[51][52]
• A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck Santiago Metropolitan Region, Chile on September 13 at a depth of 100.0 km.^[53]
• A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck the Bismarck Sea on September 22 at a depth of 50.0 km.^[54]
• A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck Hebei Province, China on September 23 at a depth of 35.0 km. Seventeen people were killed, 30 more were hurt, and some homes were wrecked.^[55][56]
• A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck off the coast of Oregon on September 28 at a depth of 35.0 km.^[57]

October

• A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of El Salvador on October 7 at a depth of 25.0 km.^[58]
• A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck the Kuril Islands, Russia on October 9 at a depth of 60.0 km.^[59]
• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Guerrero, Mexico on October 11 at a depth of 90.0 km.^[60]
• A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck the Molucca Sea, Indonesia on October 16 at a depth of 55.0 km.^[61]
• A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Totonicapan Department, Guatemala on October 27 at a depth of 200.0 km.^[62]
• A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Vanua Lava, Vanuatu on October 28 at a depth of 200.0 km.^[63]

November

• A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck east of Kodiak Island, Alaska on November 3 at a depth of 50.0 km.^[64]
• A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck the Arctic Ocean on November 8 at a depth of 35.0 km.^[65]
• A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck the Arctic Ocean on November 8 at a depth of 35.0 km. This came 57 minutes after the previous event. This is an example of a doublet earthquake.^[66]
• A magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Fiji on November 26 at a depth of 600.0 km.^[67]
• A great magnitude 8.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Pakistan on November 27 at a depth of 15.0 km. Around 4,000 people died mostly due to a tsunami that washed along the coast. $25 million (1945 rate) property damage was reported.^[68][69]

December

• A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck West New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea on December 8 at a depth of 55.0 km.^[70]
• A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck Buzau County, Romania on December 9 at a depth of 100.0 km.^[71]
• An earthquake struck Denizli Province, Turkey on December 21. The magnitude and depth were unknown. Seven deaths and some damage were caused.^[72]
• , A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck the Columbus Channel, between Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago on December 23 at a depth of 100.0 km.^[73]
• A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck West New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea on December 27 at a depth of 55.0 km. This was a foreshock to a much larger event the next day.^[74]
• A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck West New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea on December 28 at a depth of 35.0 km.^[75]

References

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