WEarthquakes in 2007 resulted in about 712 fatalities. The 2007 Peru earthquake was the deadliest with 519 fatalities. The September 2007 Sumatra earthquake was the largest in 2007 with an 8.5 on the moment magnitude scale. The 2007 Solomon Islands earthquake caused a significant tsunami that killed 52 people. There were four 8.0 or higher earthquakes in 2007 which is the most ever recorded for a single year. Other significant earthquakes in 2007 struck Chile and Japan.
WThe 2007 Aysén Fjord earthquakes occurred in Aisén Fjord, Chile from January 22 – April 22. The biggest occurred at 1:53 p.m. on April 21 and reached a felt intensity of VII on the Mercalli intensity scale. On the moment magnitude scale, the earthquake reached a gradation of 6.2. Ten people disappeared, according to ONEMI, but three bodies were found on April 22 by the Chilean Navy.
WThe 2007 Alum Rock earthquake occurred on October 30 at 8:04 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time in Alum Rock Park in San Jose, in the U.S. state of California. It measured 5.6 on the moment magnitude scale and had a maximum Mercalli intensity of VI (Strong). The event was then the largest in the San Francisco Bay Area since the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, which measured 6.9 on the moment magnitude scale, but was later surpassed by the 2014 South Napa earthquake. Ground shaking from the Alum Rock quake reached San Francisco and Oakland and other points further north. Sixty thousand felt reports existed far beyond Santa Rosa, as far north as Eugene, Oregon.
WThe 2007 Tocopilla earthquake occurred on November 14 at 12:40:50 local time. Its epicenter was located between Quillagua and Tocopilla, affecting the Tarapacá and the Antofagasta regions in northern Chile. The earthquake had a moment magnitude of 7.7 and lasted about 3 minutes and 35 seconds. Seventeen aftershocks of magnitude greater than 5.3, including one of magnitude 7.1 and two others of magnitude 6.3 or higher, were recorded. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning, stating a tsunami had been generated; after one hour, this warning was cancelled. The earthquake was felt from Santiago, 1,245 km south from the epicenter, to La Paz, about 700 km north-northeast.
WThe Chūetsu offshore earthquake was a powerful magnitude 6.6 earthquake that occurred 10:13 local time on July 16, 2007, in the northwest Niigata region of Japan. The earthquake, which occurred at a previously unknown offshore fault shook Niigata and neighbouring prefectures. The city of Kashiwazaki and the villages of Iizuna and Kariwa registered the highest seismic intensity of a strong 6 on Japan's shindo scale, and the quake was felt as far away as Tokyo. Eleven deaths and at least 1,000 injuries were reported, and 342 buildings were completely destroyed, mostly older wooden structures. Prime Minister Shinzō Abe broke off from his election campaign to visit Kashiwazaki and promised to "make every effort towards rescue and also to restore services such as gas and electricity".
WThe 2007 Gisborne earthquake occurred under the Pacific Ocean about 50 kilometres (31 mi) off the eastern coast of New Zealand's North Island at 8:55 pm NZDT on 20 December. The tremor had a moment magnitude of 6.7 and maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe), and affected the city of Gisborne, but was felt widely across the country from Auckland in the north to Dunedin in the south.
WThe 2007 Kent earthquake registered 4.3 on the Richter scale and struck south east Kent, South East England on 28 April 2007 at 07:18:12 UTC, at a shallow depth of 5.3 km.
WThe 2007 Kuril Islands earthquake occurred east of the Kuril Islands on 13 January at 1:23 p.m. (JST). The shock had a moment magnitude of 8.1 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VI (Strong). A non-destructive tsunami was generated, with maximum wave amplitudes of 0.32 meters. The earthquake is considered a doublet of the 8.3 magnitude 2006 Kuril Islands earthquake which occurred the previous November approximately 95 km to the southeast.
WThe 2007 Martinique earthquake took place on November 29 at 15:00:19 local time in the Windward Islands region, underneath the Martinique Passage. It was a magnitude 7.4 earthquake which occurred from Fort-de-France, Martinique.
WThe 2007–2008 Nazko earthquakes were a series of small volcanic earthquakes measuring less than 4.0 on the Richter magnitude scale. They took place in the sparsely populated Nazko area of the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada starting on October 9, 2007 and ending on June 12, 2008. They occurred just west of Nazko Cone, a small tree-covered cinder cone that last erupted about 7,200 years ago.
WAt 9:41:58 a.m. on March 25, 2007, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck the Hokuriku region of Japan, near the Noto Peninsula. The earthquake shook the city of Wajima, the city of Nanao, and the town of Anamizu with a seismic intensity of 6+ on Japan's shindo scale. One death, in the city of Wajima, and at least 356 injuries have been reported.
WThe 2007 Peru earthquake, which measured 8.0 on the moment magnitude scale, hit the central coast of Peru on August 15 at 23:40:57 UTC and lasted two minutes. The epicenter was located 150 km (93 mi) south-southeast of Lima at a depth of 39 km (24 mi). The United States Geological Survey National Earthquake Information Center reported that it was a Very strong earthquake. The Peruvian government stated that 519 people were killed by the quake.
WThe 2007 Solomon Islands earthquake took place on 2 April 2007, near the provincial capital of Gizo on Ghizo Island, in Solomon Islands. Its magnitude was estimated at 8.1 on the Mw scale, and 7.8 on the Ms scale. The tsunami that followed the earthquake killed 52 people. According to the USGS, the earthquake was recorded around 7:39:56 a.m. local time (UTC+11). The focus was 10 km (6 mi) deep and 40 km (25 mi) South South-East of Gizo township on New Georgia Islands in Western Province. There were numerous aftershocks, the largest of which had a magnitude of 6.2.
WThe March 2007 Sumatra earthquakes occurred near the northern end of Lake Singkarak in Sumatra, Indonesia, on March 6. The first shock in this earthquake doublet struck with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe) and the second shock that arrived two hours later had a maximum Mercalli intensity of VI (Strong).
WThe September 2007 Sumatra earthquakes were a series of megathrust earthquakes that struck the Sunda Trench off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, with three of magnitude 7 or greater. A series of tsunami bulletins was issued for the area. The most powerful of the series had a magnitude of 8.4, which makes it in the top 20 of the largest earthquakes ever recorded on a seismograph.