World Map › Major Earthquakes Since 1900 › 1988
Historic Earthquake
1988 Spitak Earthquake
7 December 1988 · Leninakan, Spitak · Armenia
On 7 December 1988 at 07:41 UTC, a magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Armenia (Leninakan, Spitak), at a depth of 5 km. It occurred on the Eurasian Plate, 344 km from its boundary with the Anatolian Plate (continental transform fault). It killed at least 25,000 people. It is the 19th deadliest of the earthquakes recorded since 1900.
- Date
- 7 December 1988
- Time
- 07:41 UTC
- Magnitude
- 6.8
- Depth
- 5 km
- Maximum Intensity
- X (Mercalli)
- Deaths
- 25,000
- Estimated Damage
- 16.2 billion US dollars
- Plate
- Eurasian Plate
- Country
- Armenia
- Nearest Volcano
- Mount Aragats (51 km)
Nearby Major Earthquakes
Other major earthquakes recorded within 300 km.
- 2011Van Earthquake of 2011 · M 7.1604 deaths
- 19911991 Racha Earthquake · M 7.0270 deaths
- 1983Erzurum Earthquake of 1983 · M 6.91,342 deaths
- 1976Muradiye Earthquake of 1976 · M 7.05,000 deaths
- 19661966 Varto Earthquake · M 6.82,394 deaths
- 19241924 Pasinler Earthquake · M 6.860 deaths
- 1905Caucasus · M 7.5
- 1903Malazgirt · M 6.33,560 deaths
Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Significant Earthquake Database (doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K) · Wikidata · Bird (2003), PB2002 · Natural Earth