M6.6 earthquake - 248 km S of ‘Ohonua, Tonga

What happened

A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck 248 km S of ‘Ohonua, Tonga on 13 Nov 1979, 20:43 UTC at a depth of 32 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 Nuku‘alofa, about 272 km away in Tongatapu, Tonga.