Earthquakes in Varenna
Seismic activity in the surroundings
30 km radiusINGV catalogue epicentres of the last ~12 years, within the given radius from the town centre.
How seismic is this area?
The quietest class: the probability of strong earthquakes is very low.
Official Civil Protection classification (upd. 2025), used for building codes.
Hazard describes the long-term expected shaking: it is not a forecast. Technical value: ag = 0.044 g (10% probability of exceedance in 50 years, rigid soil).
Why the ground rarely shakes here
Varenna sits in one of the most stable areas of Italy: far from the boundary between the Eurasian and African plates, on ancient, rigid crust that hardly accumulates tectonic stress any more.
That is why earthquakes here are rare and almost always weak: a small geological privilege.
The “area” is Varenna plus nearby towns.
The seismic history of Varenna
The earthquakes that were actually felt in Varenna over the centuries, with the intensity observed on site (Mercalli MCS scale).
- 1991NF20 November 1991
Imperceptible: only instruments record it.
Grigioni, Vaz earthquake (M4.7), epicentre 85 km away
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.
Source: Parametric Catalogue of Italian Earthquakes CPTI15 (INGV, CC BY 4.0).
The closest seismic structure
The town lies about 26 km from Western S-Alps internal thrust, one of the seismic structures mapped by INGV geologists.
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
Earthquake map
5 eventsEarthquakes in the area
Nearby towns
How does it compare with the surroundings?
Varenna is among the quietest towns of its province: very few epicentres are recorded here.
Each quake is attributed to the town closest to its epicentre: the numbers describe the area, not the municipal territory alone.
Context
Province of Lecco0 events · 30gLombardy region11 events · 30gFrequently asked questions
Were there earthquakes today in Varenna?
No, no quakes were recorded today in the Varenna area: the latest nearby dates back to 27 months ago.
Is Varenna a seismic area?
Varenna is classified in seismic zone 4 by the Civil Protection. The quietest class: the probability of strong earthquakes is very low.
What was the strongest earthquake near Varenna?
In the last ~12 years of INGV data, the strongest within 30 km of Varenna was magnitude 2.5, in 2024.
When was the last quake near Varenna?
The last quake recorded within 30 km of Varenna was 14 months ago.
Tip. Click a nearby town to explore its seismicity.
Data: INGV — National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (CC-BY 4.0)