M6.8 earthquake 48 km NNE of Segunda Jerusalén - Azunguillo, Peru

Wednesday, June 19, 1968, 08:13:35 UTC · 5.577°S, 77.139°W

A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 48 km NNE of Segunda Jerusalén - Azunguillo, Peru on Wednesday, June 19, 1968, 08:13:35 UTC, at a depth of 15.5 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.1 on July 18, 1928.

Magnitude: 6.8; Strong · mw
Depth: 16 km; Shallow
Felt reports: 0; Did You Feel It?
Est. shaking: VII; Very strong (ShakeMap)
PAGER alert: None; Not issued
Tsunami: No flag; USGS feed

Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 100 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

239 kilotons of TNT

That is about 16 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 501 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

203 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Sunda and Australian plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: shallow

16 km

Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.

Did You Feel It?

Where it was felt

No “Did You Feel It?” reports have been published for this event yet. If you felt it, you can add your report on the USGS website.

I felt it — report to USGS ↗

USGS PAGER estimate

Who was exposed to shaking

USGS publishes PAGER impact estimates for significant earthquakes, usually within an hour. No PAGER estimate is available for this event.

After the main event

Aftershocks within 100 km

USGS lists 18 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.7 on June 20, 1968. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 21 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 4 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 44 recorded deaths. The most severe:

1928M7.3
Chacahpoyas,Huancabamba,Cajamarca,Pinpincos
14 May 1928 · 170 km away · intensity X
29 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
1968M6.8
San Martin,Moyobamba,Yantalo,Rioja,Lamas
19 Jun 1968 · 7 km away
15 deathsUnder $1 million damage
1928M7.0
Peru
18 Jul 1928 · 206 km away · intensity VI
tsunami
1907
Peru
16 Nov 1907 · 273 km away · intensity VI

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

Nearby trackers