Chlef

Earthquakes near Chlef through history

From 1900 to October 19, 2026, USGS recorded 5 earthquakes of magnitude 6 or more within 100 km of Chlef, or 200 km for magnitude 7 and above. The strongest was a magnitude 7.3 on October 10, 1980 (3 km NNE of Chlef, Algeria).

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The last 30 days · as of

USGS recorded no earthquake of magnitude 4.5 or more within 100 km of Chlef in the last 30 days.

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What the record holds

It was also the deadliest: NOAA records 5,000 deaths for it. NOAA’s list of significant earthquakes has 9 here, back to 1857. NOAA records deaths in 4 of the events here, 6,280 in all. The latest on NOAA’s list is a magnitude 4.3 on January 26, 1987 (Mohammadia, Qued, Fodda, Tissemsilt). NOAA’s record here begins on May 23, 1857 with an earthquake (Sea Of Alboran). 3 of the 9 significant earthquakes NOAA lists here came before 1927. NOAA lists 4 tsunamis that began within 100 km of Chlef. The highest of them reached 0.7 m, on October 10, 1980.

The events

  • January 26, 1987Earthquake · M 4.3Mohammadia, Qued, Fodda, Tissemsilt · one death (NOAA)NOAA NCEI
  • October 10, 1980Earthquake · M 7.33 km NNE of Chlef, Algeria · 5,000 deaths (NOAA)USGS · NOAA NCEI · Wikipedia
  • October 10, 1980Tsunami · 0.7 m highEl AsnamNOAA NCEI · Wikipedia
  • September 9, 1954Earthquake · M 6.7northern Algeria · 1,243 deaths (NOAA)USGS · NOAA NCEI · Wikipedia
  • May 23, 1857EarthquakeSea Of AlboranNOAA NCEI

Good to know

  • An event counts for Chlef when it began within 100 km of its centre, or 200 km for an earthquake of magnitude 7 or more. Damage can reach further.
  • USGS counts here start at magnitude 6: the catalogue’s smaller quakes thin out going back, where few instruments listened.
  • NOAA lists significant events only: earthquakes that killed, did about $1 million of damage, reached magnitude 7.5 or intensity X, or raised a tsunami, and eruptions and tsunamis by like measures. Magnitudes before 1900 are its estimates from written accounts.
  • Deaths are NOAA’s total for each event, wherever people died, its tsunami and fires included. A tsunami counts the dead its runup records give for this place: NOAA’s total for a tsunami includes its source quake’s.
  • A tsunami from elsewhere counts where one of its runups killed or rose a metre or more.
  • Counted to October 19, 2026, as is the map. The last 30 days ask USGS again.

How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Earthquakes, live, The world through history

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