Earthquakes in Piedicavallo
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?
Medium-low seismicity: strong quakes are rare, but not impossible.
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 = 0.051 g (10% probability of exceedance in 50 years, rigid soil).
Why the ground rarely shakes here
Piedicavallo 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 Piedicavallo plus nearby towns.
The seismic history of Piedicavallo
The earthquakes that were actually felt in Piedicavallo over the centuries, with the intensity observed on site (Mercalli MCS scale).
- 1960V23 March 1960
Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.
Vallese earthquake (M5.0), epicentre 75 km away
- 1908III24 May 1908
Light: felt by few people, like a passing truck.
Piemonte centro-settentrionale earthquake (M4.1), epicentre 27 km away · observed at Montesinaro
- 1894II-III27 November 1894
Light: felt by few people, like a passing truck.
Bresciano earthquake (M4.9), epicentre 168 km away · observed at Montesinaro
- 1892IV5 March 1892
Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.
Valle d'Aosta earthquake (M5.0), epicentre 20 km away · observed at Montesinaro
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 57 km from Western Monferrato, 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
34 eventsEarthquakes in the area
Nearby towns
How does it compare with the surroundings?
Piedicavallo 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 Biella0 events · 30gPiedmont region34 events · 30gFrequently asked questions
Were there earthquakes today in Piedicavallo?
No, no quakes were recorded today in the Piedicavallo area: the latest nearby dates back to 14 months ago.
Is Piedicavallo a seismic area?
Piedicavallo is classified in seismic zone 3 by the Civil Protection. Medium-low seismicity: strong quakes are rare, but not impossible.
What was the strongest earthquake near Piedicavallo?
In the last ~12 years of INGV data, the strongest within 30 km of Piedicavallo was magnitude 2.3, in 2024.
When was the last quake near Piedicavallo?
The last quake recorded within 30 km of Piedicavallo was 2 months ago.
Tip. Click a nearby town to explore its seismicity.
Data: INGV — National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (CC-BY 4.0)