How frequent are earthquakes in the area near the epicenter of this quake (within 100 km/61 mi)?

Q: How frequent are earthquakes in the area near the epicenter of this quake (within 100 km/61 mi)?

The area where this quake occurred has a high level of seismic activity. Based on data from the past 54 years and our earthquake archive back to 1900, there are about 583 quakes on average per year in the area near the epicenter of this quake (within 100 km/61 mi). It has had at least 7 quakes above magnitude 6 since 1900, which suggests that larger earthquakes of this size occur infrequently, probably on average approximately every 15 to 20 years.

Light Mag. 3.2 Earthquake - Albania on Sunday, Jan 14, 2024, at 12:23 am (Tirane Time)

Earthquake details

Date & time	Jan 13, 2024 23:23:26 UTC -
Local time at epicenter	Sunday, Jan 14, 2024, at 12:23 am (Europe/Tirane GMT +1)
Status	Preliminary (automatic detection)
Magnitude	3.2
Depth	5 km
Epicenter latitude / longitude	40.9°N / 19.78°E Bashkia Lushnje, Qarku i Fierit, Albania Also near: North Macedonia 72 km (45 mi) away \| Greece 100 km (62 mi) away
Seismic antipode	40.9°S / 160.22°W
Shaking intensity	IV Light shaking near epicenter
Felt	28 reports
Primary data source	SSS (Seismological Survey of Serbia)
Nearest volcano	###NEARESTVOLCANO2###
Weather at epicenter at time of quake	Clear Sky 2.7°C (37 F), humidity: 68%, wind: 1 m/s (3 kts) from E
Estimated seismic energy released	4 x 10⁹ joules (1.11 megawatt hours, equivalent to 0.951 tons of TNT) \| about seismic energy

[smaller] [bigger]

Most recent quakes Top 20 past 24 hrs Quakes in Albania

Nearby places

The closest larger town where the quake might have been felt is Patos, a town with 60,000 inhabitants in Albania, in 28 km (17 mi) distance southwest of the epicenter. People likely experienced very weak shaking there. Many smaller towns and villages are located closer to the epicenter and might have experienced stronger shaking. In the capital of

Albania, Tirana, 48 km (30 mi) away from the epicenter, the earthquake was probably felt as very weak shaking.
The following table shows some of the places that might have been affected (or not) by the shaking.

Distance	Place	Max. shaking intensity(*)	Region	Country
8 km (5 mi) NW of epicenter	Lushnje (pop: 41,500)	III: Weak	Rrethi i Lushnjes, Qarku i Fierit	Albania
12 km (8 mi) S of epicenter	Drenovicë (pop: 1,910)	III: Weak	Bashkia Ura Vajgurore, Qarku i Beratit	Albania
16 km (10 mi) SE of epicenter	Petrolia (pop: 18,200)	III: Weak	Rrethi i Kucoves, Qarku i Beratit	Albania
16 km (10 mi) N of epicenter	Pekin (pop: 7,510)	III: Weak	Rrethi i Peqinit, Qarku i Elbasanit	Albania
20 km (13 mi) NW of epicenter	Germanj-Ceka (pop: 884)	II: Very weak	Bashkia Divjake, Qarku i Fierit	Albania
22 km (14 mi) NE of epicenter	Cërrik (pop: 14,300)	II: Very weak	Elbasan, Qarku i Elbasanit	Albania
22 km (14 mi) S of epicenter	Allambres (pop: 1,080)	II: Very weak	Bashkia Ura Vajgurore, Qarku i Beratit	Albania
25 km (16 mi) E of epicenter	Belesovë (pop: 152)	II: Very weak	Bashkia Kucove, Qarku i Beratit	Albania
26 km (16 mi) SE of epicenter	Berat (pop: 46,900)	II: Very weak	Qarku i Beratit	Albania
27 km (17 mi) SW of epicenter	Fier (pop: 56,300)	II: Very weak	Qarku i Fierit	Albania
28 km (17 mi) SW of epicenter	Patos (pop: 60,000)	II: Very weak	Fier, Qarku i Fierit	Albania
31 km (19 mi) S of epicenter	Patos Fshat (pop: 22,700)	II: Very weak	Qarku i Fierit	Albania
34 km (21 mi) S of epicenter	Baleri (pop: 10,400)	II: Very weak	Mallakastër, Qarku i Fierit	Albania
34 km (21 mi) E of epicenter	Gramsh (pop: 11,600)	II: Very weak	Qarku i Elbasanit	Albania
37 km (23 mi) S of epicenter	Molisht (pop: 390)	II: Very weak	Bashkia Berat, Qarku i Beratit	Albania
37 km (23 mi) NW of epicenter	Kavajë (pop: 29,400)	II: Very weak	Tirana	Albania
39 km (24 mi) NE of epicenter	Krrabë (pop: 1,180)	II: Very weak	Bashkia Tirane, Tirana	Albania
42 km (26 mi) SE of epicenter	Poliçan (pop: 10,700)	II: Very weak	Berat, Qarku i Beratit	Albania
43 km (27 mi) S of epicenter	Selenicë (pop: 6,910)	II: Very weak	Vlora, Qarku i Vlores	Albania
48 km (30 mi) N of epicenter	Tirana (pop: 374,800)	II: Very weak	Tirana	Albania
52 km (32 mi) SE of epicenter	Posten (pop: 46)	II: Very weak	Bashkia Skrapar, Qarku i Beratit	Albania
53 km (33 mi) N of epicenter	Shijak (pop: 14,100)	II: Very weak	Durres, Durres	Albania
54 km (33 mi) N of epicenter	Kamëz (pop: 11,000)	II: Very weak	Tirana, Tirana	Albania
54 km (34 mi) NW of epicenter	Durres (pop: 122,000)	II: Very weak	Durres, Durres	Albania
57 km (35 mi) NE of epicenter	Librazhd-Qendër (pop: 12,700)	II: Very weak	Librazhd, Qarku i Elbasanit	Albania
58 km (36 mi) SE of epicenter	Çorovodë (pop: 14,000)	II: Very weak	Rrethi i Skraparit, Qarku i Beratit	Albania
60 km (37 mi) E of epicenter	Qukës-Shkumbin (pop: 650)	II: Very weak	Qarku i Elbasanit	Albania
62 km (39 mi) SE of epicenter	Krushovë (pop: 33)	II: Very weak	Bashkia Skrapar, Qarku i Beratit	Albania

Notes:
(*) Shaking intensity according to the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale (MMI) and estimated using seismic models.

User-reports for this quake (31)

We received 31 reports for this quake from

Albania. Out of these, 28 people indicated they felt it. The quake was reported to have been felt in up to approx. 30–40 km (18.6–25 mi) distance, with isolated cases to have felt the quake even 54 km (34 mi) away.

The majority of reports came from Tirana (3 reports), the capital of

Albania with 370,000 inhabitants in 48 km (30 mi) distance north of the epicenter, Kavajë (2 reports), a town with 29,000 inhabitants in Tirana in 37 km (23 mi) distance northwest of the epicenter, and Fier (1 report) (27 km or 17 mi to the southwest). See the list of places where most people reported this quake further below.

User reports estimate the perceived ground shaking intensity according to the MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity) scale.

Contribute:
Leave a comment if you find a particular report interesting or want to add to it.
Flag as inappropriate.
Mark as helpful or interesting.
Send your own user report!

Translate

Golem (43.9 km NNW of epicenter) [Map] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s

Lushnje, Rrethi i Lushnjës, Fier (7.5 km WNW of epicenter) [Map] / Moderate shaking (MMI V)

Tirana (48.1 km N of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s : Short and horizontal vibration

Tirana (48.5 km N of epicenter) [Map] / not felt (reported through our app)

Durres, Durrës District (54.5 km NNW of epicenter) [Map] / Light shaking (MMI IV) (reported through our app)

Tirana (46 km N of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 2-5 s

Kavajë, Tirana (37 km NNW of epicenter) [Map] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) (reported through our app)

Fier (34.3 km SW of epicenter) [Map] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s

Tirana (47.3 km N of epicenter) [Map] / Light shaking (MMI IV) (reported through our app)

Samaticë, Bashkia Ura Vajgurore, Berat (8.2 km SSW of epicenter) [Map] / not felt (reported through our app)

Tirana (45.2 km N of epicenter) [Map] / not felt (reported through our app)

Vlorë / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s

Tirana / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s : Roof creaked Bed vibrated

Vlore / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s

Durres / Weak shaking (MMI III) : Bed was moving and there was some building creaking.

Vlorë / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s

Durres / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging

Vlore / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s

Fier / Weak shaking (MMI III) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s : A little bit scared, not ready to handle the situation, upset

Fier / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 5-10 s

Karbunar e madhe / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s

Tirana / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 15-20 s

Fier / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / 1-2 s

Tirana / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s : Weak shaking standing on bed

Tirana / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s : Sitting on couch, shaking sideways. Plants shaking

Tirana / Weak shaking (MMI III)

Ohrid, Macedonia / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s

Tirana / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / 5-10 s

Vlore / Light shaking (MMI IV) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s

Tirana / Light shaking (MMI IV)

Tirana / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 2-5 s

List of cities/places with most reports

Place	Distance from epicenter	Average reported Shaking Intensity	Nr. of reports
Tirana, Tirana, Albania (Pop.: 374,801)	48 km (30 mi) N of epicenter	III: Weak shaking	3
Kavajë, Tirana, Albania (Pop.: 29,354)	37 km (23 mi) NW of epicenter	IV: Light shaking	2
Fier, Qarku i Fierit, Albania (Pop.: 56,297)	27 km (17 mi) SW of epicenter	V: Moderate shaking	1
Durres, Durres, Albania (Pop.: 122,034)	54 km (34 mi) NW of epicenter	IV: Light shaking	1
Lushnje, Qarku i Fierit, Albania (Pop.: 41,469)	7.8 km (4.9 mi) NW of epicenter	V: Moderate shaking	1

Note: Only reports with latitude/longitude coordinate positions given (11 in total) could be used for statistics.

What is Intensity and the Mercalli Intensity Scale?

The amount of shaking that occurs on the surface due to an earthquake is called the intensity. It is commonly measured on the so-called Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale (MMI) ranging from 1 (not felt) to 10 (extreme shaking), and given in Roman numerals as I,II,...IX, X, and often displayed with color codes ranging from light blue to dark red.
Earthquake intensity depends mainly on the magnitude and depth of the quake as well as the distance from the epicenter: The further away, the less shaking intensity occurs.
Read more about the MMI scale!

Number of reports by intensity

Shaking intensity	Number of reports	Min-Max distance from epicenter (*)	Average distance (*)
I: Not felt	3	8.2–48 km (5.1–30 mi)	34 km (21 mi)
II: Very weak shaking	1	37–37 km (23–23 mi)	37 km (23 mi)
III: Weak shaking	2	46–48 km (29–30 mi)	47 km (29 mi)
IV: Light shaking	1	47–47 km (29–29 mi)	47 km (29 mi)
V: Moderate shaking	3	7.5–44 km (4.7–27 mi)	29 km (18 mi)

Notes
(*) Reports are filtered to exclude those that are likely highly inaccurate or esaggerated.
Only reports with latitude/longitude coordinate positions given (11 in total) could be used for geographic statistics.

Compare Quake Data

Data for the same earthquake as reported by different agencies

The more agencies report about the same quake and post similar data, the more confidence you can have in the data. It takes normally up to a few hours until earthquake parameters are calculated with near-optimum precision.

Mag	Depth	Time GMT 2024-01-13	Epicenter	Agency
3.2	5 km 3.1 mi	23:23:26	Albania	SSS (Seismological Survey of Serbia)
2.7	7.9 km 4.9 mi	23:23:28	Albania 9.5 km (5.9 mi) epicenter difference with SSS	EMSC (European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre)
3.0	7.9 km 4.9 mi	23:23:27	Costa Albanese Settentrionale (ALBANIA) 9.5 km (5.9 mi) epicenter difference with SSS	INGV (Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia)

Seismograms

Seismic station: Castrocucco, Italy (CUC/MN network) | Distance from quake: 350 km / 218 mi | Show on map | Station Info

Seismic station Castrocucco, Italy: vertical movement plot around time of quake (source: IRIS/BUD)

Seismogram (vertical component) around time of quake. Thin dotted red line indicates time of quake. Seismic waves arrive some time later, depending on distance. Bandpass filter applied: 0.5-10.0 Hz. Source: IRIS Buffer of Uniform Data (BUD) webtool

Earthquake statistics

Average number of earthquakes

Based on data from the past 54 years and our earthquake archive back to 1900, there are about 583 quakes on average per year in the area near the epicenter of this quake (within 100 km/61 mi):

Mag. 6 or higher: 0.06 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 17.9 years)
Mag. 5 or higher: 0.63 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 1.6 years)
Mag. 4 or higher: 21.4 quakes per year
Mag. 3 or higher: 90 quakes per year (or 7.5 quakes per month)
Mag. 2 or higher: 494 quakes per year (or 41 quakes per month)
Mag. 1 or higher: 582 quakes per year (or 49 quakes per month)

The area where this quake occurred has a high level of seismic activity. It has had at least 7 quakes above magnitude 6 since 1900, which suggests that larger earthquakes of this size occur infrequently, probably on average approximately every 15 to 20 years.