M6.9 earthquake near Wewak, East Sepik Province
16415 d ago · 6 Nov 1981, 16:47 UTC 17 km E of Wewak, Papua New Guinea
What happened
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 17 km E of Wewak, Papua New Guinea on 6 Nov 1981, 16:47 UTC at a depth of 33 km.
Earthquakes of this size are classed as Strong. Can cause damage in populated areas up to tens of kilometres away. This was a shallow earthquake, which tends to be felt more strongly at the surface.
The nearest town in our records is Wewak, about 18 km away in East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea.
Timeline
First reported by USGS
16 Oct 2026, 20:46 UTC
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