List of earthquakes in South Africa explained

The following is a list of notable earthquakes or tremors that have been detected within South Africa.

According to Professor Andrzej Kijko from the University of Pretoria's Natural Hazard Centre, mining can activate natural faults. He believes that 95% of South Africa's earthquakes are caused by mining, especially around the areas of Klerksdorp, Welkom and Carletonville. According to earth science consultant Dr Chris Hartnady, "This part of Africa is in the vicinity of the African Rift system, which is being pulled apart by a few millimetres annually." He says "earthquakes are caused by a slip on a fault line and the release of stored elastic energy" and mining activity can trigger earthquakes.[1]

Earthquake data

For earthquakes prior to the modern era, the magnitude and epicentre location are only approximate, and were calculated based on available reports from the time. The magnitude where given is measured using the Richter scale (

ML

) unless stated otherwise.

20th and 21st century

DateTime (SAST)EpicentreRegionwidth=8%

ML

DepthDeathsNotes
29 September 1969Near TulbaghWestern Cape6.312 [2] The 1969 Tulbagh earthquake remains the most destructive earthquake in South African history. The earthquake occurred in the Tulbagh area and measured 6.3 on the Richter scale, stronger than that of the 1809 Cape Town earthquake which destroyed a local Milnerton farm.[3] [4]
14 April 1970 Tulbagh-Ceres-Wolseley area Western Cape5.7Second quake[5]
8 December 1976WelkomFree State5.24 Miners.[6]
26 September 1990WelkomFree State4.22
9 March 2005Stilfontein,North West5.32Miners were killed underground.[7] [8]
28 May 2013Near MbabaneEswatini4.0The earthquake was felt in Newcastle and lasted about six seconds.[9]
22 June 201307:08ThabazimbiLimpopo3.99 kmThe earthquake was felt up in the Thabazimbi area.[10]
7 July 201316:52BarbertonMpumalanga4.75 kmThe earthquake was felt in the Barberton area.[11]
11 November 2013University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg4.0The earthquake was felt as far as parts of northern and southern Johannesburg and lasted for around 10–15 seconds.[12]
2 December 201321:18~25 km south of Bela-BelaLimpopo4.85 kmThe earthquake was felt as far as Parkhurst and Randburg in Johannesburg, Hartebeespoort Dam in North West, Witbank and KwaMhlanga in Mpumalanga, and Soshanguve near Pretoria.[13] [14]
15 June 201418:16Near OrkneyNorth West4.95 kmThe earthquake was felt up to Potchefstroom.[15]
5 August 201412:22Near OrkneyNorth West5.55.0 kmThe earthquake was felt as far as parts of Botswana and Durban, it lasted for around 90 sec. The local Council for Geoscience measured the earthquake at 5.5 on the Richter scale, while the United States Geological Survey (USGS) recorded a moment magnitude of 5.4.[16] [17] [18] [19]
22 August 20141:14Near Orange FarmGauteng3.810 kmThe second earthquake in South Africa in less than three weeks.[20] No reports of injuries.[21] The Council for Geoscience (CGS) in South Africa reported an earthquake of 3.8 with two aftershocks occurring within minutes of each other of 3.2 and 2.0 respectively.[22]
31 October 201913:20Near Port ShepstoneKwaZulu-Natal4.310 kmThe CGS reported an earthquake of a preliminary value of 3.7 on the local magnitude scale. However, the USGS has it logged as 4.3[23] [24]
26 September 202019:101600 km SE of South AfricaWestern Cape6.110 kmUSGS report.[25] Mistakenly reported to have been felt in Cape Town. See below earthquake.
26 September 202020:4112 km W of PaarlWestern Cape2.75 kmFelt by residents in Cape Town area. CGS report.[26] USGS report.[27]
27 September 202009:12Durbanville Area, Cape TownWestern Cape2.65 kmFelt by residents in Cape Town area. CGS report.[28] USGS report. [29]
17 November 202000:2741 km S of SaldanhaWestern Cape3.55 kmFelt by residents in Cape Town area. CGS report.[30] USGS report. [31]
30 July 202106:30JohannesburgGauteng3.610 kmFelt by residents in Johannesburg. CGS report. USGS report. [32]
05 November 202214:3223 km from Umvoti Local MunicipalityKwaZulu-Natal4.69 kmFelt by residents in Durban area.
11 June 202302:382 kilometers from Alberton.Gauteng5.010 kmFelt by residents across the city of Johannesburg and the region as a whole.[33]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Hosken . Graeme . Smillie . Shaun . Child . Katharine . Louw . Poppy . Masombuka . Sipho . Quake of shaky things to come . Times LIVE . 6 August 2014 . 6 August 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140819090009/http://www.timeslive.co.za/thetimes/2014/08/06/quake-of-shaky-things-to-come . 19 August 2014 . live .
  2. Web site: 50 years on: What we learned from South Africa's biggest quake . Durrheim . Ray . 2019-10-15 . University of the Witwatersrand . 2020-11-16.
  3. News: Shevel . Adele . Insurers brace for a wave of quake claims . 15 August 2014 . Business Day . 10 August 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140819090056/http://www.bdlive.co.za/businesstimes/2014/08/10/insurers-brace-for-a-wave-of-quake-claims . 19 August 2014 . dead.
  4. News: Ceres earthquake . 9 March 2014 . 9 March 2014 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120427054052/http://www.stormchasing.co.za/articles-and-news/historic-weather-archive/184-tulbagh-ceres-1969-earthquake . 27 April 2012.
  5. Web site: 22 September 2019 . We've learnt a great deal since South Africa's biggest quake 50 years ago .
  6. News: Seale . Lebogang . Quake triggered by mine activity – expert . 14 August 2014 . The Star . 14 August 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140814194316/http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/free-state/quake-triggered-by-mine-activity-expert-1.1731225 . 14 August 2014 . live .
  7. Web site: Media Update: 5.5 magnitude earthquake – tremors continue . Council for Geoscience . 14 August 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140814225626/http://www.geoscience.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2090:media-release-5-5-magnitude-earthquake-tremors-continue&catid=288:latest-news&Itemid=226 . 14 August 2014 . dead .
  8. News: le Cordeur . Matthew . Did mining cause SA quake? . 14 August 2014 . Fin24 . 6 August 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140812085334/http://www.fin24.com/Companies/Mining/Did-mining-cause-Jhb-quake-20140806 . 12 August 2014 . dead .
  9. News: Tremor hits northern KZN. IOL. 29 May 2012. 4 December 2013.
  10. Web site: 3.9 magnitude earthquake 15 km from Thabazimbi, Limpopo, South Africa. Earthquake Track. 22 June 2013. 22 June 2013.
  11. Web site: 4.7 magnitude earthquake 49 km from Barberton, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Earthquake Track. 7 July 2013. 7 July 2013.
  12. News: Earth tremor felt in Joburg. IOL. 18 November 2013. 4 December 2013.
  13. News: Tremor strikes near Bela Bela. IOL. 3 December 2013. 4 December 2013.
  14. Web site: 4.8 magnitude earthquake 40 km from Siyabuswa, Mpumalanga, South Africa. Earthquake Track. 2 December 2013. 2 December 2013.
  15. Web site: 4.9 magnitude earthquake 7 km from Orkney, North-West, South Africa. Earthquake Track. 15 June 2014. 15 June 2014.
  16. News: Tempelhoff. Elise. Cilliers. Susan. Só skeur Afrika (stadig) in twee. Beeld. af. Thus Africa tears (slowly) in two. 6 August 2014. 6 August 2014. 10 August 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140810123959/http://www.beeld.com/nuus/2014-08-06-s-skeur-afrika-stadig-in-twee. dead.
  17. News: Aardbewing van 5.3 ruk SA, berigte van skade (twiets). Beeld. af. Earthquake of 5.3 shakes SA, reports of damage (tweets). 5 August 2014. 5 August 2014. 6 August 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140806223407/http://www.beeld.com/nuus/2014-08-05-aardskudding-in-gauteng-noordwes. dead.
  18. Web site: M5.4 – 3km ENE of Orkney, South Africa. United States Geological Survey. 16 October 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140808045411/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usb000s0b3. 8 August 2014. live.
  19. Web site: 5.4 magnitude earthquake 4 km from Orkney, North-West, South Africa. Earthquake Track. 5 August 2014. 14 August 2014.
  20. News: 4.6 magnitude earthquake hits west of Orange Farm. 22 August 2014.
  21. News: No injuries after 4.6 magnitude quake. 22 August 2014.
  22. Web site: Three earthquakes hit the Carletonville area early in the morning. 22 August 2014. 22 August 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20150525191237/http://www.geoscience.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2107:three-earthquakes-hit-the-carletonville-area-early-in-the-morning&catid=288&Itemid=226. 25 May 2015. dead.
  23. Web site: Statement on the Seismic Event That Occurred in the KZN Area. 1 November 2019.
  24. Web site: M 4.3 - 44 km NW of Port Shepstone, South Africa. 31 October 2019.
  25. Web site: M 6.1 - South of Africa. 2020-11-17. earthquake.usgs.gov.
  26. Web site: CGS Earthquake Detail - M2.7 - Cape Town.
  27. Web site: M 2.7 - 12 km W of Paarl, South Africa. 2020-11-17. earthquake.usgs.gov.
  28. Web site: CGS Earthquake Detail - M2.5 - Cape Town.
  29. Web site: M 2.6 - 19 km ESE of Atlantis, South Africa. 2020-11-17. earthquake.usgs.gov.
  30. Web site: CGS Earthquake Detail - M3.4 Saldanha, South Africa.
  31. Web site: M 3.5 - 41 km S of Saldanha, South Africa. 2020-11-17. earthquake.usgs.gov.
  32. Web site: 2021-07-30. Tremor: 3.6 magnitude quake rattles Johannesburg on Friday. 2021-07-30. The Citizen. en.
  33. News: 10 June 2023 . Moderate Earthquake Hits Johannesburg, South Africa . BNO News . 11 June 2023.

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