Reviewed by USGSPeru60y ago
M5.7 earthquake 118 km SW of Huarmey, Peru
Saturday, October 29, 1966, 15:32:22 UTC · 10.766°S, 78.975°W
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck 118 km SW of Huarmey, Peru on Saturday, October 29, 1966, 15:32:22 UTC, at a depth of 39.4 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M8.1 on October 17, 1966.
- Magnitude
- 5.7
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 39 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- —
- No ShakeMap
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
5 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/3 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 10 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
89 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and South American plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
39 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 75 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 15 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.221 km SE of Huacho, PeruMay 24, 1940 · 175 km E of this epicenter
- 8.167 km W of Paramonga, PeruOctober 17, 1966 · 58 km E of this epicenter
- 7.155 km SW of Santiago de Cao, PeruJune 21, 1937 · 286 km N of this epicenter
- 6.928 km W of Paramonga, PeruSeptember 24, 1963 · 98 km E of this epicenter
- 6.710 km SSW of Huacho, PeruMay 24, 1940 · 154 km E of this epicenter
- 6.480 km SW of Puerto Casma, PeruApril 18, 1962 · 92 km N of this epicenter
- 6.3274 km WSW of Puerto Casma, PeruNovember 17, 1925 · 181 km W of this epicenter
- 6.3102 km SW of Huarmey, PeruSeptember 29, 1916 · 19 km NE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 23 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 8,585 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1746M8.0
Lima, Callao
29 Oct 1746 · 237 km away · intensity XI
5,941 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1725M7.7
Trujillo, Ancash, Lima
7 Jan 1725 · 196 km away · intensity IX
1,500 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1946M7.3
Jocaibamba,Cerro Angaschaj,Cerro Sillapata
10 Nov 1946 · 299 km away · intensity XI
800 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1940M8.2
Peru
24 May 1940 · 218 km away · intensity X
179 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1966M8.1
Lima,Huacho,Huaura, Chancay,Supe,San Nicolas
17 Oct 1966 · 37 km away · intensity IX
110 deaths$35 million damagetsunami
- 1828M8.3
Lima, Callao
30 Mar 1828 · 198 km away · intensity VII
30 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.