Province of Potenza

Earthquakes in Ruoti

1.3
very light
LATEST QUAKE

2 km South-East of Satriano di Lucania

6 days ago · 19 Aug, 19:27
Depth 11 km

Seismic activity in the surroundings

30 km radius
5
days since the last quake nearby
1,440
quakes recorded since 2014
~3 days
on average, one quake every
4.2
The strongest within 30 km
3 km East of Potenza
18 months ago · 18 Mar, 10:01

INGV catalogue epicentres of the last ~12 years, within the given radius from the town centre.

How seismic is this area?

Zone2
Seismic zone 2

A zone where strong earthquakes are possible: new buildings follow strict anti-seismic criteria.

Official Civil Protection classification (upd. 2025), used for building codes.

Medium
Expected shaking, compared with the other Italian municipalities (INGV MPS04 model)

Hazard describes the long-term expected shaking: it is not a forecast. Technical value: ag = 0.213 g (10% probability of exceedance in 50 years, rigid soil).

Closest earthquake
Earthquake details
33
In the town
total on record
3
In the town
last 12 months
84
In the area
last 12 months
M4.2
Strongest ever
In the area

The “area” is Ruoti plus nearby towns.

Last earthquake: 19 days ago · 3,542 inhabitants

The seismic history of Ruoti

The earthquakes that were actually felt in Ruoti over the centuries, with the intensity observed on site (Mercalli MCS scale).

  1. 2004V3 September 2004

    Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.

    Potentino earthquake (M4.4), epicentre 1 km away

  2. 1991VI26 May 1991

    Strong: felt by everyone, many get scared; objects fall, first light damage to buildings.

    Potentino earthquake (M5.1), epicentre 11 km away

  3. 1990VI-VII5 May 1990

    Very strong: hard to stand; chimneys and roof tiles fall, serious damage to weaker buildings.

    Potentino earthquake (M5.8), epicentre 6 km away

  4. 1983V2 February 1983

    Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.

    Potentino earthquake (M4.3), epicentre 8 km away

  5. 1981VI21 September 1981

    Strong: felt by everyone, many get scared; objects fall, first light damage to buildings.

    Potentino earthquake (M4.2), epicentre 6 km away

  6. 1981V-VI9 January 1981

    Strong: felt by everyone, many get scared; objects fall, first light damage to buildings.

    Irpinia-Basilicata earthquake (M4.4), epicentre 5 km away

  7. 1980VII23 November 1980

    Very strong: hard to stand; chimneys and roof tiles fall, serious damage to weaker buildings.

    Irpinia-Basilicata earthquake (M6.8), epicentre 38 km away

  8. 1973V8 August 1973

    Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.

    Appennino campano-lucano earthquake (M4.8), epicentre 22 km away

  9. 1857VII-VIII16 December 1857

    Ruinous: partial collapses in ordinary buildings, widespread heavy damage.

    Basilicata earthquake (M7.1), epicentre 41 km away

  10. 1851VI14 August 1851

    Strong: felt by everyone, many get scared; objects fall, first light damage to buildings.

    Vulture earthquake (M6.5), epicentre 29 km away

  11. 1694IX8 September 1694

    Destructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.

    Irpinia-Basilicata earthquake (M6.7), epicentre 30 km away

  12. 1561VIII19 August 1561

    Ruinous: partial collapses in ordinary buildings, widespread heavy damage.

    Vallo di Diano earthquake (M6.7), epicentre 22 km away

…and 17 more documented effects in this town's history.

Source: Italian Macroseismic Database DBMI15 (INGV, CC BY 4.0).

The great earthquakes in this area's history

Almost a thousand years of catalogues: the strongest documented events within ~50 km.

18577.1
Basilicata earthquake
16 December 1857 · 41 km from here
XICatastrophic: very few buildings remain standing; landslides and ground cracks.
19806.8
Irpinia-Basilicata earthquake
23 November 1980 · 38 km from here
XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
16946.7
Irpinia-Basilicata earthquake
8 September 1694 · 30 km from here
XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
15616.7
Vallo di Diano earthquake
19 August 1561 · 22 km from here
X-XICatastrophic: very few buildings remain standing; landslides and ground cracks.

Source: Parametric Catalogue of Italian Earthquakes CPTI15 (INGV, CC BY 4.0).

The closest seismic structure

Baragiano-Palagianello

The town lies about 1 km from Baragiano-Palagianello, one of the seismic structures mapped by INGV geologists.

estimated maximum magnitude 7.4between 13 and 22 km deep

Faults are mapped to build better and understand the territory: knowing them says nothing about when an earthquake will occur, which remains unpredictable. Source: DISS 3.3 (INGV, CC BY 4.0).

Area over time

August 202611eventsmax 2.1
Oct
Jan '25
Apr
Jul
Oct
Jan '26
Apr
Jul

Earthquake map

60 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

Earthquakes in the area

1.3
6 days ago
19 Aug, 19:27
1.3
6 days ago
19 Aug, 19:27
1.2
4 km East of Potenza
13 km East · 11 km
9 days ago
16 Aug, 01:24
1.3
13 days ago
12 Aug, 02:36
2.1
4 km West of Abriola
21 km South · 27 km
14 days ago
11 Aug, 11:49
0.9
6 km West of Abriola
19 km South · 19 km
15 days ago
10 Aug, 12:36
1.5
4 km East of Ruoti
4 km East · 11 km
19 days ago
6 Aug, 04:51
1.2
2 km North of Forenza
23 km North-East · 3 km
20 days ago
5 Aug, 11:19
1.9
2 km East of Potenza
12 km East · 11 km
22 days ago
3 Aug, 14:49
1.2
4 km West of Ruoti
4 km West · 10 km
23 days ago
2 Aug, 19:47

Nearby towns

How does it compare with the surroundings?

Ruoti records more quakes than the average of its province.

quietermore active
More epicentres than 74% of the 100 towns in the province.
Ruoti33
Nearby towns average71

Each quake is attributed to the town closest to its epicentre: the numbers describe the area, not the municipal territory alone.

Context

Province of Potenza26 events · 30gBasilicata region31 events · 30g
ISTAT code: 076071

Frequently asked questions

Were there earthquakes today in Ruoti?

No, no quakes were recorded today in the Ruoti area: the latest nearby dates back to 6 days ago.

Is Ruoti a seismic area?

Ruoti is classified in seismic zone 2 by the Civil Protection. A zone where strong earthquakes are possible: new buildings follow strict anti-seismic criteria.

What was the strongest earthquake near Ruoti?

In the last ~12 years of INGV data, the strongest within 30 km of Ruoti was magnitude 4.2, in 2025.

When was the last quake near Ruoti?

The last quake recorded within 30 km of Ruoti was 6 days ago.

Tip. Click a nearby town to explore its seismicity.

Data: INGV — National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (CC-BY 4.0)

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