Earthquakes in January 2025

Seven earthquakes were felt by the population in Austria in January. The epicentres were in Tyrol, Styria, Lower Austria and Italy.

At 02:42 CET on 10 January, a magnitude 3.8 earthquake was felt in the Villa Santina area in Friuli, Italy (46.43°N, 12.80°E). The epicentre was about 20 kilometres from the Austrian border. The tremors were felt mainly in south-west Carinthia and East Tyrol with a maximum intensity of 3 degrees on the 12-level European Macroseismic Scale (EMS-98).

On 12 January, another quake followed at 14:51 CET in the Villa Santina area in Friuli, Italy (46.45°N, 12.85°E). With a magnitude of 4.1, the tremors were somewhat stronger and were felt weakly to clearly in Austria in the area between Sillian, Mallnitz and Villach, most strongly in Kötschach-Mauthen. The earthquake service received 40 online reports on this quake. The intensity in Austria reached 3 to 4 degrees on the EMS-98.

A clearly perceptible earthquake with a magnitude of 1.9 occurred on 20 January at 09:12 CET in the Lower Inn Valley near Terfens, Tyrol (47.31°N, 11.64°E). Many people noticed a jolt and a rumble or thunder, buildings were slightly shaken. The epicentre intensity was 4 degrees on the EMS-98, the quake was felt approximately between Wattens and Strass in the Zillertal.

In the early hours of the morning of 21 January at 03:39 CET, a slight earthquake with a magnitude of 1.2 was localised in the north-west of Innsbruck, Tyrol (47.28°N, 11.38°E), which was felt weakly by some people in Innsbruck-Hötting and Reith bei Seefeld. The intensity reached 3 degrees on the EMS-98.

The epicentre of a magnitude 1.9 earthquake was located near Kramsach, Tyrol, which was felt by some people at 12:04 CET on 21 January. In the area of the epicentre (47.43°N, 11.86°E) a clear tremor was felt, the intensity in Brixlegg and Kramsach was 3 degrees on the EMS-98.

In Styria, a magnitude 2.3 earthquake with an epicentre a few kilometres south-east of Unzmarkt-Frauenburg (47.17°N, 14.49°E) occurred on 27 January at 07:52 CET. The weak tremors were reported to the earthquake service by 17 people, the intensity reached 3 degrees on the EMS-98.

During the night from 27 to 28 January, a noticeable earthquake was registered in Lower Austria at 00:32 CET, the epicentre of which was located in the area southwest of Reichenau an der Rax (47.68°N, 15.79°E). The earthquake of magnitude 2.1 was felt weakly by some people with an intensity of 3 degrees on the EMS-98.

The Austrian Seismological Service would like to thank the population for their perception reports, which were used to determine the intensity of the earthquakes.

Extract from short form of the 12-level European Macroseismic Scale 1998, based on Mercalli-Sieberg

• 3 Weak : The vibration is weak and is felt indoors by a few people. People at rest feel swaying or light trembling. Noticeable shaking of many objects.
• 4 Largely observed: The earthquake is felt indoors by many people, outdoors by few. A few people are awakened. The level of vibration is possibly frightening. Windows, doors and dishes rattle. Hanging objects swing. No damage to buildings.

Date / Universal time / M / Epicentre / Comment

02/01/2025 / 20:43 / 6.1 / Northern Chile / 21.73°S 69.12°W / Very sparsely populated region in the Andes, quake centre at a depth of 99 km

04.01.2025 / 00:52 / 5.7 / Ethiopia, 160 km NE of Addis Ababa / 51.00°N 177.33°W / Some casualties and damage, more than 60,000 people evacuated

05.01.2025 / 17:18 / 6.2 / El Salvador, 55 km off the coast / 13.00°N 89.23°W / -

07.01.2025 / 01:05 / 7.1 / China, southern highlands of Tibet / 28.57°N 87.38°E / At least 126 fatalities, hundreds injured, damage to dams

12.01.2025 / 08:32 / 6.2 / Mexico / 18.59°N 103.24°W / Sparsely populated region, some damage

13.01.2025 / 12:19 / 6.8 / Japan, SE of Miyazaki / 31.81°N 131.57°E / 20 cm high tsunami was recorded

20.01.2025 / 16:17 / 6.0 / Taiwan / 23.23°N 120.48°E / Dozens injured, massive damage

Time - Earthquake time in Universal Time UTC or Greenwich Mean Time GMT / M - Magnitude (logarithmic energy measure) / The coordinates of the world earthquakes are from USGS / Data without guarantee

Seismological Service of Austria - GeoSphere Austria Hohe Warte 38, A-1190 Vienna Tel. +43 1 36026 2508 E-mail: seismo@zamg.ac.at

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)