Country profile · USGS ComCat
Earthquakes in Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Kitts and Nevis has catalogued 23 M4+ earthquakes since 2005 (ranked 118th of 187 countries), with the strongest reaching magnitude M6.5.
Saint Kitts and Nevis ranks 118th of 187 countries by catalogued seismic activity - a country with limited but non-zero seismic activity, averaging about 1 M4+ events a year alongside 2 significant M6+ earthquakes since 1900. The M6+ record here is thin - 2 events in all, so a single quake moves every figure on this page.
- 23
- M4+ events (since 2005)
- 2
- Major M6+ (since 1900)
- M6.5
- Strongest
- ~1
- M4+ per year
The verdict
Saint Kitts and Nevis is below the global median in catalogued seismic activity, with 23 M4+ earthquakes logged since 2005 and 2 major M6+ events since 1900, the strongest reaching magnitude 6.5.
- 1935
- busiest year (1 major events)
- 14 km
- average recorded event depth
- 100%
- of events are shallow (<70 km, the most damaging kind)
Average catalogued magnitude is 4.3 - most events are moderate M4-5 tremors that are felt but rarely cause damage. On the M4+ activity ladder Armenia sits immediately above at 27 events and Mauritania sits immediately below at 21.
Catalog event strip
Event tape SAINT-KITTS- · Saint Kitts and Nevis M4+ · 118th/187
Saint Kitts and Nevis · 23 M4+ · max M6.5 · 2 M6+
- SHAL 23
- PCT 118th/187
- VS-PEER M6.5
- COMCAT 2
- TAPE near Armenia
- EPIC 100% shallow
Stamps derive from this country's USGS ComCat row (M4+ book, rank, peak magnitude, M6+ record, ladder neighbour, depth/peak year), not a hazard forecast. PlainQuake is informational only - not professional advice and not a substitute for official USGS guidance. See our disclaimer. Verify with USGS ComCat → · Read with methodology → · How earthquakes are measured → · Reading earthquake data → · All country catalog rows → · Countries ranked →
Observed impact record
What ComCat observed after earthquakes in Saint Kitts and Nevis
USGS recorded Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) for 1 events in this catalogued record; their average observed intensity was MMI 5.7. These are only events with an observation, not an estimate of future shaking or a safety rating.
- MMI observations
- 1
- Average observed MMI
- 5.7
- PAGER alerts / tsunami flags
- 0 / 0
Source: USGS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat) GeoJSON impact fields. Missing MMI, alert, and tsunami values remain unreported rather than being treated as zero.
Where Saint Kitts and Nevis sits in the catalog
Rank 118th of 187 tracked countries (37th percentile by M4+ count since 2005). On the M4+ activity ladder Armenia sits immediately above at 27 events and Mauritania sits immediately below at 21.
- Armenia - next more active (27 M4+)
- Mauritania - next less active (21 M4+)
Saint Kitts and Nevis's M4+ count vs. every tracked country
Total catalogued M4+ events since 2005, USGS ComCat
23 Top 63% higher than 37% of 187 countries
Each bar is a 500-wide band; taller bars hold more countries. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source USGS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat) · 2005-present
0 of 23 catalogued M4+ events since 2005 reached M6.0 or higher.
Magnitude distribution of major events
Breakdown of the 2 significant (M6+) earthquakes on record for Saint Kitts and Nevis.
M6.0-6.9
2
100.0%
Depth of major earthquakes
Hypocentral depth of the 2 M6+ events, shallow quakes shake the surface hardest. Average depth: 14 km.
Shallow (<70 km)
2
100.0% of events
Intermediate (70–300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Deep (>300 km)
0
0.0% of events
Strongest earthquakes in Saint Kitts and Nevis
The 2 most powerful events on record (USGS, since 1900).
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.5 | 18 km SE of Market Shop, Saint Kitts and Nevis | 13.4 km | Mar 16, 1985 |
| 6.2 | 32 km SSE of Fig Tree, Saint Kitts and Nevis | 15.0 km | Nov 10, 1935 |
Significant earthquake record (2 events)
Every catalogued magnitude-6.0-and-above earthquake in Saint Kitts and Nevis since 1900, most recent first.
| Mag | Location | Depth | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.5 | 18 km SE of Market Shop, Saint Kitts and Nevis | 13.4 km | Mar 16, 1985 |
| 6.2 | 32 km SSE of Fig Tree, Saint Kitts and Nevis | 15.0 km | Nov 10, 1935 |
Other countries in this catalog sample
A Saint Kitts and Nevis-keyed shuffle of the full 186-country roster, not the six nearest by count.
Federated States of Micronesia
59 M4+ events · strongest M6.3
United Arab Emirates
6 M4+ events · strongest M4.7
Chile
13,888 M4+ events · strongest M8.8
Montenegro
42 M4+ events · strongest M5.2
Libya
36 M4+ events · strongest M5.2
Kuwait
12 M4+ events · strongest M4.7
Peak-magnitude sample from the same roster
A second Saint Kitts and Nevis-keyed shuffle of countries with a recorded max magnitude.
Showing 6 of 186 countries with a recorded max magnitude.
According to the US Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program, PlainQuake's figures are rendered directly from 317,293 recorded M4+ earthquakes and 14,444 significant M6+ events (USGS ComCat, 2005-present) -- no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-26.