# List of earthquakes in 1998

This is a list of earthquakes in 1998. Only earthquakes of magnitude 6 or above are included, unless they result in damage or casualties, or are notable for some other reason. All dates are listed according to UTC time. Maximum intensities are indicated on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale, and all data are sourced from the United States Geological Survey.

## By death toll

| Rank | Magnitude | Death toll | Location | MMI | Depth (km) | Date | Event |
| 1 | 6.6 | 4,500 | Afghanistan, Hindu Kush | VIII (Severe) | 30.0 | May 30 | May 1998 Afghanistan earthquake |
| 2 | 7.0 | 2,700 | Papua New Guinea, Aitape offshore | VIII (Severe) | 10.0 | July 17 | 1998 Papua New Guinea earthquake |
| 3 | 5.9 | 2,323 | Afghanistan, Hindu Kush | VIII (Severe) | 33.0 | February 4 | February 1998 Afghanistan earthquake |
| 4 | 6.3 | 145 | Turkey, Adana | IX (Violent) | 33.0 | June 27 | 1998 Adana–Ceyhan earthquake |
| 5 | 6.6 | 105 | Bolivia, Cochabamba | VIII (Severe) | 24.0 | May 22 | 1998 Aiquile earthquake |
| 6 | 5.7 | 70 | China, Inner Mongolia | VIII (Severe) | 30.3 | January 10 | 1998 Zhangbei–Shanyi earthquake |
| 7 | 7.7 | 41 | Indonesia, North Maluku offshore | IX (Violent) | 33.0 | November 29 | 1998 North Maluku earthquake |
| 8 | 5.8 | 12 | Iran, Qayen | VIII (Severe) | 33.0 | April 10 | - |
| 9 | 6.2 | 10 | Portugal, Azores Islands offshore | VIII (Severe) | 10.0 | July 9 | 1998 Azores Islands earthquake |
At least 10 dead.

## By magnitude

| Rank | Magnitude | Death toll | Location | MMI | Depth (km) | Date |
| 1 | 8.1 | 0 | Antarctica, Balleny Islands offshore | I (Not felt) | 10.0 | March 25 |
| 2 | 7.7 | 41 | Indonesia, North Maluku offshore | IX (Violent) | 33.0 | November 29 |
| 3 | 7.5 | 0 | Japan, Ishigaki offshore | V (Moderate) | 33.0 | May 3 |
| 3 | 7.5 | 0 | New Caledonia, Loyalty Islands offshore | I (Not felt) | 100.6 | January 4 |
| 5 | 7.2 | 0 | Fiji, Levuka offshore | III (Weak) | 537.2 | March 29 |
| 5 | 7.2 | 3 | Ecuador, Bahía de Caráquez | X (Extreme) | 33.0 | August 4 |
| 7 | 7.1 | 1 | Chile, Antofagasta | VIII (Severe) | 42.0 | January 30 |
| 7 | 7.1 | 0 | Japan, Bonin Islands offshore | IV (Light) | 440.5 | August 20 |
| 9 | 7.0 | 2,700 | Papua New Guinea, Aitape offshore | VIII (Severe) | 10.0 | July 17 |
| 9 | 7.0 | 0 | Solomon Islands, Lata offshore | VII (Very strong) | 110.2 | July 16 |
| 9 | 7.0 | 0 | Indonesia, Sumatra offshore | VIII (Severe) | 55.7 | April 1 |
| 9 | 7.0 | 0 | Indonesia, Banda Sea offshore | VIII (Severe) | 33.0 | November 9 |

## By month
### January

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 4 | New Caledonia, Loyalty Islands offshore | 7.5 | 100.6 | I | - | - | - |
| 10 | China, Inner Mongolia | 5.7 | 30.3 | VIII | Further information: 1998 Zhangbei–Shanyi earthquake | 70 | 11,500 |
| 10 | Peru, Madre De Dios | 6.4 | 33.0 | IX | - | - | - |
| 10 | Guatemala, Suchitepequez | 6.6 | 33.0 | VII | Twenty-four people injured in Guatemala and three in El Salvador. Several homes destroyed in Solola; some buildings damaged, landslides and power outages in Quezaltenango and San Marcos Departments. | - | 27 |
| 12 | Chile, Coquimbo | 6.6 | 34.8 | VIII | - | - | - |
| 12 | Fiji Region offshore | 6.7 | 23.4 | VI | An example of a Doublet earthquake | - | - |
| 14 | Fiji Region offshore | 6.6 | 33.0 | V | An example of a Doublet earthquake | - | - |
| 27 | Fiji Islands offshore | 6.5 | 610.1 | I | - | - | - |
| 30 | Chile, Antofagasta | 7.1 | 42.0 | VIII | One person died from a heart attack and a few poorly constructed buildings suffered minor damage in Antofagasta. | 1 | - |

### February

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 3 | Mexico, Oaxaca | 6.4 | 33.0 | VIII | Moderate damage in San Agustin. | - | - |
| 4 | Afghanistan, Hindu Kush region | 5.9 | 30.0 | VIII | Further information: February 1998 Afghanistan earthquake | 2,323 | 818 |
| 11 | Philippines, Leyte | 5.5 | 56.8 | IV | Six people injured, a fishing pier destroyed, 11 buildings damaged, roads cracked and water pipes damaged at Sogod. | - | 6 |
| 16 | Iceland, Reykjanes Ridge offshore | 6.8 | 10.0 | I | - | - | - |
| 19 | Indonesia, Maluku offshore | 6.5 | 33.0 | VIII | - | - | - |
| 20 | Afghanistan, Hindu Kush region | 6.4 | 235.6 | IV | One person killed and 11 injured in Pakistan. An earthquake-induced avalanche destroyed 35 houses, including a mosque, left 300 people homeless and killed several dozen livestock in Kashmir. | 1 | 11 |

### March

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 3 | Guatemala region | 6.1 | 62.8 | VII | Landslides blocked some highways and electrical cables damaged in Nahuala. | - | - |
| 14 | Iran, Kerman | 6.6 | 9.0 | IX | Five people Killed, 50 injured, 10,000 homeless, 2,000 houses damaged or destroyed and 1,200 livestock killed in Golbaf. | 5 | 50 |
| 19 | China, Xinjiang | 5.6 | 33.0 | VII | 400 homes destroyed and some livestock were killed in the epicentral area. | - | - |
| 20 | New Zealand, Auckland Islands offshore | 6.7 | 10.0 | I | - | - | - |
| 25 | Antarctica, Balleny Islands offshore | 8.1 | 10.0 | I | The 1998 Balleny Islands earthquake is believed to be the largest instrumentally recorded earthquake in this area to date, and the largest earthquake in 1998. A tsunami was observed with heights of 1 cm in southern Australia. | - | - |
| 25 | Australia region offshore | 6.4 | 10.0 | I | - | - | - |
| 26 | Italy, Assisi | 5.4 | 10.0 | VII | One person died from a heart attack and several buildings damaged in the epicentral area. | 1 | - |
| 29 | Fiji, Levuka offshore | 7.2 | 537.2 | III | - | - | - |

### April

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 1 | Indonesia, Mentawai Islands Offshore | 7.0 | 55.7 | VIII | - | - | - |
| 1 | Chile, Los Lagos offshore | 6.7 | 9.0 | V | - | - | - |
| 3 | Italy, Assisi | 5.2 | 10.0 | VII | Five people injured and 300 houses damaged or destroyed in Gualdo. | - | 5 |
| 3 | Peru, Ucayali | 6.6 | 164.6 | V | - | - | - |
| 4 | Turkey, Afyon | 5.3 | 10.0 | VI | Some minor damage occurred in the Afyon area. | - | - |
| 10 | Iran, Qayen | 5.8 | 33.0 | VIII | At least 12 people killed, 10 injured and more than 600 homes severely damaged in the Birjand-Gonabad area. | 12 | 10 |
| 12 | Slovenia, Tolmin | 5.6 | 10.0 | VIII | One person died of a heart attack at Bovec. Landslides and damaged buildings left 700 people homeless. Some damage in Austria. | 1 | - |
| 13 | Turkey, Bingöl | 5.3 | 33.0 | VII | Eleven people were injured and several buildings damaged or destroyed at Karliova. | - | 11 |
| 20 | Mexico, Guerrero | 6.0 | 67.3 | V | - | - | - |

### May

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 3 | Japan, Ryuku Islands offshore | 7.5 | 33.0 | V | A minor local tsunami was generated with recorded wave heights of 0.04 m on Ishigaki. | - | - |
| 13 | Papua New Guinea, New Britain | 6.6 | 61.4 | VIII | Minor damage in the Kokopo area. | - | - |
| 16 | Fiji Islands offshore | 6.9 | 586.1 | I | - | - | - |
| 22 | Bolivia, Cochabamba | 6.6 | 24.0 | VIII | Further information: 1998 Aiquile earthquake | 105 | 150 |
| 28 | Egypt, Mediterranean Sea offshore | 5.5 | 10.0 | VI | One person injured in Cairo. | - | 1 |
| 28 | China, Xinjiang | 5.6 | 33.0 | VII | Twenty-eight people injured, more than 2,000 buildings destroyed, an additional 3,000 damaged and 5,000 head of cattle killed in Xinjiang. | - | 28 |
| 30 | Afghanistan, Badakhshan Province | 6.6 | 30.0 | VIII | Main article: May 1998 Afghanistan earthquake | 4,500 | 10,001 |

### June

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 1 | Russia, Kamchatka offshore | 6.4 | 43.7 | VII | - | - | - |
| 7 | Mexico, Chiapas | 6.3 | 86.6 | VI | - | - | - |
| 18 | United Kingdom, Ascension Island region offshore | 6.3 | 10.0 | I | - | - | - |
| 27 | Turkey, Adana | 6.3 | 33.0 | IX | The 1998 Adana–Ceyhan earthquake killed at least 145 people, left 1,500 people injured and many thousands homeless. | 145 | 1,500 |
| 29 | Australia, Macquarie Island offshore | 6.3 | 10.0 | I | - | - | - |

### July

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 4 | Turkey, Adana | 5.4 | 33.0 | VII | At least 1,000 people injured and one building collapsed in Adana. | - | 1,000 |
| 9 | Portugal, Azores Islands offshore | 6.2 | 10.0 | VIII | Further information: 1998 Azores Islands earthquake | 10 | 100 |
| 9 | Azerbaijan region | 6.0 | 26.0 | VII | Extensive damage occurred in Astara and Yardimli. | - | - |
| 9 | New Zealand, Kermadec Islands offshore | 6.9 | 129.5 | I | - | - | - |
| 16 | Solomon Islands, Nendo offshore | 7.0 | 110.2 | VII | - | - | - |
| 17 | Taiwan, Nantou County | 5.7 | 12.6 | VIII | Five people killed, 27 others injured, damage and landslides in Chiayi County. | 5 | 27 |
| 17 | Papua New Guinea, Aitape offshore | 7.0 | 10.0 | VIII | Further information: 1998 Papua New Guinea earthquake | 2,700 | Thousands |
| 28 | China, Xinjiang | 5.2 | 33.0 | VI | Several people injured and 19 houses collapsed in Baicheng County. | - | Several |
| 29 | Chile, Valparaíso | 6.4 | 51.1 | VI | Two people died from heart attacks in Santiago and four miners injured at the Boton de Oro mine. | 2 | 4 |
| 29 | Indonesia, Papua | 6.7 | 33.0 | VIII | - | - | - |

### August

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 2 | China, Xinjiang | 5.6 | 10.0 | VIII | Two people injured and several homes destroyed in Jiashi County. | - | 2 |
| 4 | Iran, Khorasan province | 5.3 | 33.0 | V | Some damage occurred in Khorasan province. | - | - |
| 4 | Ecuador, Manabi | 7.2 | 33.0 | X | Further information: 1998 Bahía de Caráquez earthquake | 3 | 40 |
| 12 | United States, California | 5.1 | 8.8 | VII | Two people injured in Santa Cruz County. Some damage to a church at San Juan Bautista and minor cracking of highway 101 in San Benito County. | - | 2 |
| 15 | Italy, Lazio | 4.8 | 10.0 | VII | Some damage in Antrodoco | - | - |
| 15 | Japan, Nagano Prefecture | 5.5 | 10.0 | VII | Damage due to a landslide in Gifu Prefecture. | - | - |
| 20 | Japan, Bonin Islands offshore | 7.1 | 440.5 | IV | - | - | - |
| 20 | United States, Alaska, Aleutian Islands offshore | 6.3 | 33.0 | I | - | - | - |
| 23 | Nicaragua, Chinandega offshore | 6.7 | 54.6 | V | - | - |
| 27 | China, Xinjiang | 6.4 | 10.0 | VIII | Three people killed, seven injured, more than 3,600 houses destroyed, 18,771 damaged and 159 livestock killed in Jiashi County. | 3 | 7 |
| 28 | Japan, Tokyo offshore | 5.4 | 75.9 | V | Two people were slightly injured in the Tokyo-Yokohama area. | - | 2 |

### September

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 2 | Philippines, Mindanao offshore | 6.8 | 50.0 | VI | Objects fell from shelves in General Santos. | - | - |
| 3 | Japan, Iwate | 5.9 | 38.1 | VIII | Eleven people injured and landslides blocked two roads in the epicentral area. | - | 11 |
| 3 | Chile, Coquimbo offshore | 6.6 | 27.0 | VIII | Two people injured in La Serena. | - | 2 |
| 15 | Japan, Miyagi | 5.1 | 50.4 | VII | One person injured in Miyagi. | - | 1 |
| 21 | Vanuatu, Torba offshore | 6.4 | 33.0 | VII | - | - | - |
| 24 | Mongolia, Dundgovi | 5.6 | 33.0 | VII | Many homes damaged in Mandalgovi. | - | - |
| 28 | Indonesia, Java | 6.6 | 151.6 | VII | One person killed, 38 homes destroyed and 62 others damaged in Malang. | 1 | - |
| 29 | FR Yugoslavia | 5.5 | 10.0 | VIII | Further information: 1998 Mionica earthquake | 1 | 17 |
| 30 | Albania, Kukës | 5.3 | 10.0 | VI | 700 houses damaged in the epicentral area. | - | - |

### October

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 5 | Iran, Ilam | 5.4 | 38.6 | IV | At least 100 houses damaged in the Darreh Shahr area | - | - |
| 8 | Peru, Arequipa | 6.2 | 136.2 | IV | Minor damage in Arequipa. | - | - |
| 10 | Indonesia, Sulawesi | 5.9 | 33.0 | VIII | Many homes damaged in Donggala. | - | - |
| 10 | Indonesia, Sulawesi | 6.0 | 33.0 | VIII | Many homes damaged in Donggala. | - | - |
| 18 | Nicaragua, Masaya | 4.4 | 10.0 | VI | Three people injured, two homes destroyed and 45 severely damaged in Ticuantepe. | - | 3 |
| 26 | China, Yunnan | 4.7 | 10.0 | VI | 28 people injured and 700 houses damaged in Lijiang. | - | 28 |
| 28 | Indonesia, Sulawesi offshore | 6.6 | 10.0 | VI | - | - |

### November

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 8 | Indonesia, East Nusa Tenggara offshore | 6.4 | 33.0 | VI | - | - | - |
| 9 | Indonesia, East Timor offshore | 6.7 | 33.0 | VIII | - | - | - |
| 9 | Indonesia, East Timor offshore | 7.0 | 33.0 | VIII | - | - | - |
| 13 | Iran, Fars | 5.4 | 33.0 | VII | Five people killed, 105 others injured and 850 houses damaged by the earthquake and landslides. | 5 | 105 |
| 18 | Iran, Kerman | 5.4 | 33.0 | V | Damage to buildings in Kerman. | - | - |
| 19 | China, Yunnan | 5.6 | 33.0 | VIII | Five people killed, 1,543 others injured and over 28,000 houses damaged in the epicentral area. | 5 | 1,543 |
| 29 | Indonesia, North Maluku offshore | 7.7 | 33.0 | IX | 41 people were killed and 171 people were injured in the 1998 North Maluku earthquake, with over 500 homes destroyed and over 700 others damaged. | 41 | 171 |

### December

| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Casualties | Casualties |
| Date | Country and location | M$_w$ | Depth (km) | MMI | Notes | Dead | Injured |
| 1 | China, Yunnan | 4.5 | 10.0 | V | 84 people injured and 21,400 houses damaged, along with 472 schools. | - | 84 |
| 6 | Indonesia, Sulawesi offshore | 6.6 | 33.0 | VI | - | - | - |
| 11 | Afghanistan, Hindu Kush | 5.7 | 222.5 | III | Five people killed and seven others injured in Kabul. | 5 | 7 |
| 27 | Tonga offshore | 6.8 | 144.3 | V | - | - | - |