M6.1 earthquake - 166 km WSW of Lorengau, Papua New Guinea

What happened

A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck 166 km WSW of Lorengau, Papua New Guinea on 19 Sept 1940, 23:59 UTC at a depth of 35 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 273 km away in East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea.