Earthquakes in Postua
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 = 0.045 g (10% probability of exceedance in 50 years, rigid soil).
Why the ground rarely shakes here
Postua 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 Postua plus nearby towns.
The seismic history of Postua
The earthquakes that were actually felt in Postua over the centuries, with the intensity observed on site (Mercalli MCS scale).
- 2005NF8 September 2005
Imperceptible: only instruments record it.
Massif du Mont-Blanc earthquake (M4.4), epicentre 108 km away
- 2000III21 August 2000
Light: felt by few people, like a passing truck.
Monferrato earthquake (M4.9), epicentre 93 km away
- 1892IV5 March 1892
Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.
Valle d'Aosta earthquake (M5.0), epicentre 37 km away
- 1891IV7 June 1891
Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.
Valle d'Illasi earthquake (M5.9), epicentre 231 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 61 km from Western Valais, 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
3 eventsEarthquakes in the area
Nearby towns
How does it compare with the surroundings?
Postua 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 Vercelli0 events · 30gPiedmont region36 events · 30gFrequently asked questions
Were there earthquakes today in Postua?
No, no quakes were recorded today in the Postua area: the latest nearby dates back to 96 months ago.
Is Postua a seismic area?
Postua 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 Postua?
In the last ~12 years of INGV data, the strongest within 30 km of Postua was magnitude 2.1, in 2019.
When was the last quake near Postua?
The last quake recorded within 30 km of Postua 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)