[3][4] Both the mainshock and aftershock occurred along the Sagaing Fault; a continental transform fault boundary that links the Andaman Spreading Center to the south and the Main Himalayan Thrust to the north.

The Sagaing Fault is the most active geological structure in the country and poses significant risks to major cities such as Yangon, Mandalay, and Naypyidaw.

Another major tectonic feature in Myanmar is the Sunda Megathrust that runs off the coast of Western Myanmar and the Kabaw Fault that traces the foothills of the Arakan Mountains and Indo-Burman Range.

[6] A second shock of magnitude Mw  7.7 came three minutes later and ruptured south of the first event for a length of 185 kilometres (115 mi).

[6] From observing the historical records of earthquakes, the years 1906 and 1908 saw two major events in the northernmost end of the Sagaing Fault.