M6.9 earthquake near Manokwari, West Papua

What happened

A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 44 km ENE of Manokwari, Indonesia on 1 Mar 1959, 16:49 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 Manokwari, about 45 km away in West Papua, Indonesia.