M5.3 earthquake near Banda Aceh, Aceh

What happened

A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck 81 km W of Banda Aceh, Indonesia on 18 Dec 2016, 19:24 UTC at a depth of 51 km.

Earthquakes of this size are classed as Moderate. Can damage poorly built structures close to the epicentre. This was a shallow earthquake, which tends to be felt more strongly at the surface.

The nearest town in our records is Banda Aceh, about 81 km away in Aceh, Indonesia.