Reviewed by USGSPeru63y ago
M6.9 earthquake 28 km W of Paramonga, Peru
Tuesday, September 24, 1963, 16:30:17 UTC · 10.648°S, 78.089°W
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 28 km W of Paramonga, Peru on Tuesday, September 24, 1963, 16:30:17 UTC, at a depth of 64.1 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M8.2 on May 24, 1940.
- Magnitude
- 6.9
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 64 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
338 kilotons of TNT
That is about 22 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 708 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
176 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and South American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
64 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 100 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 14 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 · 95 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.86 km SSW of Quiches, PeruNovember 10, 1946 · 252 km N of this epicenter
- 6.710 km SSW of Huacho, PeruMay 24, 1940 · 78 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.518 km WSW of Oxapampa, PeruDecember 24, 1937 · 276 km E of this epicenter
- 6.480 km SW of Puerto Casma, PeruApril 18, 1962 · 121 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.3274 km WSW of Puerto Casma, PeruNovember 17, 1925 · 277 km W of this epicenter
- 6.3102 km SW of Huarmey, PeruSeptember 29, 1916 · 90 km W of this epicenter
- 6.2101 km SW of Callao, PeruJanuary 24, 1957 · 228 km S 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 8,475 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1746M8.0
Lima, Callao
29 Oct 1746 · 179 km away · intensity XI
5,941 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1725M7.7
Trujillo, Ancash, Lima
7 Jan 1725 · 209 km away · intensity IX
1,500 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1946M7.3
Jocaibamba,Cerro Angaschaj,Cerro Sillapata
10 Nov 1946 · 247 km away · intensity XI
800 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1940M8.2
Peru
24 May 1940 · 120 km away · intensity X
179 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1828M8.3
Lima, Callao
30 Mar 1828 · 168 km away · intensity VII
30 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1937M6.5
Huancabamba,Oxapampa,El Progreso,San David
24 Dec 1937 · 167 km away · intensity X
15 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.