Earthquakes in Gallarate
No epicentres recorded in Gallarate in our archive. Here is the seismicity of the area and its surroundings.
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 = 0.038 g (10% probability of exceedance in 50 years, rigid soil).
Why the ground rarely shakes here
Gallarate 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 Gallarate plus nearby towns.
The seismic history of Gallarate
The earthquakes that were actually felt in Gallarate over the centuries, with the intensity observed on site (Mercalli MCS scale).
- 2008III-IV23 December 2008
Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.
Parmense earthquake (M5.4), epicentre 174 km away
- 1983III9 November 1983
Light: felt by few people, like a passing truck.
Parmense earthquake (M5.0), epicentre 153 km away
- 1960III23 March 1960
Light: felt by few people, like a passing truck.
Vallese earthquake (M5.0), epicentre 99 km away
- 1951IV15 May 1951
Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.
Lodigiano earthquake (M5.2), epicentre 81 km away
- 1918IV13 January 1918
Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.
Pianura lombarda earthquake (M4.6), epicentre 24 km away
- 1914V27 October 1914
Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.
Lucchesia earthquake (M5.6), epicentre 241 km away
- 1913IV-V7 December 1913
Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.
Valle Scrivia earthquake (M4.6), epicentre 102 km away
- 1912NF31 May 1912
Imperceptible: only instruments record it.
Canavese earthquake (M4.7), epicentre 80 km away
- 1901V30 October 1901
Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.
Garda occidentale earthquake (M5.4), epicentre 132 km away
- 1891F7 June 1891
Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.
Valle d'Illasi earthquake (M5.9), epicentre 185 km away
- 1887IV23 February 1887
Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.
Liguria occidentale earthquake (M6.3), epicentre 207 km away
- 1802F12 May 1802
Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.
Valle dell'Oglio earthquake (M5.6), epicentre 86 km away
…and one more documented effect 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.
Source: Parametric Catalogue of Italian Earthquakes CPTI15 (INGV, CC BY 4.0).
The closest seismic structure
The town lies about 44 km from Western S-Alps external thrust shallow-west, 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
0 eventsEarthquakes in the area
Nearby towns
How does it compare with the surroundings?
Gallarate 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 Varese0 events · 30gLombardy region11 events · 30gFrequently asked questions
Were there earthquakes today in Gallarate?
No, no quakes were recorded today in the Gallarate area.
Is Gallarate a seismic area?
Gallarate 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 Gallarate?
In the last ~12 years of INGV data, the strongest within 30 km of Gallarate was magnitude 2.6, in 2019.
When was the last quake near Gallarate?
The last quake recorded within 30 km of Gallarate was 20 months ago.
Tip. Click a nearby town to explore its seismicity.
Data: INGV — National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (CC-BY 4.0)