Mae Chan Fault is an active 118 km long west-southwest–east-northeast trending left lateral strike-slip fault in Northern Thailand that extends into western Laos.
[1] It was responsible for a 6.3 magnitude quake in Laos on May 16, 2007, that caused property damage as far as Chiang Rai[2] in Thailand.
This has resulted in an area of dominantly strike-slip tectonics with the north–south trending right lateral Sagaing Fault and the northwest–southeast trending right lateral Red River Fault being the largest structures.
The block between these two major fault zones is characterised by west–east extension combined with a set of sub-parallel west-southwest–east-northeast trending left lateral strike-slip faults, giving an overall transtensional setting.
A Japanese study found that it is capable of producing a 7.0 magnitude quake,[5] and is considered as one of two of the most "worrying" faults in Thailand.