Province of Messina

Earthquakes in Francavilla di Sicilia

1.0
very light
LATEST QUAKE

3 km North-East of Mazzarrà Sant'Andrea

11 hours ago · 24 Aug, 23:00
Depth 12 km

Seismic activity in the surroundings

30 km radius
Today
days since the last quake nearby
7,057
quakes recorded since 2014
~1 days
on average, one quake every
4.3
The strongest within 30 km
4 km North-West of Zafferana Etnea
93 months ago · 24 Dec, 17:50

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 = 0.203 g (10% probability of exceedance in 50 years, rigid soil).

Closest earthquake
Earthquake details
39
In the town
total on record
1
In the town
last 12 months
99
In the area
last 12 months
M3.9
Strongest ever
In the area

The “area” is Francavilla di Sicilia plus nearby towns.

Last earthquake: 9 months ago · 3,901 inhabitants

The seismic history of Francavilla di Sicilia

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

  1. 2013IV15 August 2013

    Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.

    Monti Peloritani earthquake (M4.4), epicentre 31 km away

  2. 2010IV2 April 2010

    Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.

    Etna - Piano Pernicana (Linguaglossa) earthquake (M4.2), epicentre 15 km away

  3. 2008IV16 December 2008

    Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.

    Etna - Versante sud-occidentale earthquake (M4.0), epicentre 35 km away

  4. 1999V-VI14 February 1999

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

    Golfo di Patti earthquake (M4.7), epicentre 33 km away

  5. 1990IV-V13 December 1990

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

    Sicilia sud-orientale earthquake (M5.6), epicentre 75 km away

  6. 1978VI15 April 1978

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

    Golfo di Patti earthquake (M6.0), epicentre 50 km away

  7. 1912IV-V22 December 1912

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

    Stretto di Messina earthquake (M4.7), epicentre 53 km away

  8. 1908VII-VIII28 December 1908

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

    Stretto di Messina earthquake (M7.1), epicentre 55 km away

  9. 1905V8 September 1905

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

    Calabria centrale earthquake (M7.0), epicentre 124 km away

  10. 1893V-VI22 April 1893

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

    Monti Nebrodi earthquake (M4.8), epicentre 11 km away

  11. 1818VII20 February 1818

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

    Catanese earthquake (M6.3), epicentre 37 km away

  12. 1693IX11 January 1693

    Destructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.

    Sicilia sud-orientale earthquake (M7.3), epicentre 89 km away

…and 32 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.

18186.3
Catanese earthquake
20 February 1818 · 37 km from here
IX-XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
17866.1
Golfo di Patti earthquake
10 March 1786 · 20 km from here
IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.
19786.0
Golfo di Patti earthquake
15 April 1978 · 50 km from here
VIIIRuinous: partial collapses in ordinary buildings, widespread heavy damage.
17495.8
Messina earthquake
August 1749 · 47 km from here
VIII-IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.

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

The closest seismic structure

Patti-Giardini

The town lies about 7 km from Patti-Giardini, one of the seismic structures mapped by INGV geologists.

estimated maximum magnitude 7.1between 3 and 20 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 202615eventsmax 3.9
Oct
Jan '25
Apr
Jul
Oct
Jan '26
Apr
Jul

Earthquake map

60 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

Earthquakes in the area

1.0
11 hours ago
24 Aug, 23:00
1.4
3 km North-West of Basicò
18 km North-West · 14 km
3 days ago
22 Aug, 13:19
0.8
2 km East of Montalbano Elicona
10 km North-West · 4 km
3 days ago
22 Aug, 05:13
1.2
4 km West of Basicò
15 km North-West · 11 km
4 days ago
21 Aug, 14:08
1.2
5 km West of Linguaglossa
16 km South-West · 1 km
5 days ago
20 Aug, 08:03
1.1
5 km South-West of Linguaglossa
16 km South-West · 0 km
5 days ago
20 Aug, 07:49
1.0
5 km West of Linguaglossa
16 km South-West · 1 km
5 days ago
20 Aug, 07:36
1.8
6 days ago
19 Aug, 19:29
1.8
6 days ago
19 Aug, 19:29
1.5
3 km North-West of Basicò
17 km North-West · 10 km
8 days ago
17 Aug, 22:14

Nearby towns

How does it compare with the surroundings?

Francavilla di Sicilia is about average for its province in recorded quakes.

quietermore active
More epicentres than 58% of the 108 towns in the province.
Francavilla di Sicilia39
Nearby towns average93

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

Context

Province of Messina73 events · 30gSicily region127 events · 30g
ISTAT code: 083025

Frequently asked questions

Were there earthquakes today in Francavilla di Sicilia?

No, no quakes were recorded today in the Francavilla di Sicilia area: the latest nearby dates back to 11 hours ago.

Is Francavilla di Sicilia a seismic area?

Francavilla di Sicilia 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 Francavilla di Sicilia?

In the last ~12 years of INGV data, the strongest within 30 km of Francavilla di Sicilia was magnitude 4.3, in 2018.

When was the last quake near Francavilla di Sicilia?

The last quake recorded within 30 km of Francavilla di Sicilia was 9 hours 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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