2 July 2022 Iran Earthquake Sequence Event Briefing

On 2 July 2022, at approximately 2:02 am local time, a moment magnitude (Mw) 6.0 earthquake, with a depth of 16.0 km, struck the southern Iranian Gulf coast, with epicentral coordinates of 26.935°N, 55.254°E. Approximately two hours later, this earthquake was followed by Mw 5.7 and Mw 6.0 earthquakes at the same origin. The 5.7 Mw earthquake occurred at 3:54 am with epicentral coordinates of 26.925°N, 55.247°E at 10.0 km depth, and the second 6.0 Mw event occurred one minute after the 5.7 Mw earthquake at 3:55 am with epicentral coordinates of 26.899°N, 55.321°E, also at 10.0 km depth. Such earthquake sequences are relatively common in this region, however, at this intensity, three earthquakes with such comparable magnitude at the same location three hours apart is a unique case from a seismological perspective.

The objectives of this Event Briefing are: (1) to provide details of the 2 July 2022 Mw 6.0 Southern Iran Earthquakes, (2) to describe damage to buildings and disruption to the community in terms of fatalities, downtime, and economic losses, and (3) to list key lessons learned from this international seismic event.