Reviewed by USGSEcuador83y ago
M6.6 earthquake 45 km ESE of Esmeraldas, Ecuador
Monday, October 23, 1944, 23:40:10 UTC · 0.767°N, 79.297°W
A magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck 45 km ESE of Esmeraldas, Ecuador on Monday, October 23, 1944, 23:40:10 UTC, at a depth of 20.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.8 on May 14, 1942.
- Magnitude
- 6.6
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 20 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 earthquakeColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
120 kilotons of TNT
That is about 8 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 251 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
139 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and North Andes plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
20 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 26 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.81906 Ecuador-Colombia EarthquakeJanuary 31, 1906 · 22 km N of this epicenter
- 7.812 km SE of Pedernales, EcuadorMay 14, 1942 · 116 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.813 km N of Muisne, EcuadorJune 30, 1916 · 80 km W of this epicenter
- 6.667 km NNW of Esmeraldas, EcuadorJune 1, 1907 · 109 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.629 km SE of Pedernales, EcuadorJuly 12, 1942 · 119 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.5197 km NW of Manta, EcuadorNovember 18, 1914 · 299 km W of this epicenter
- 6.537 km SSW of La Tola, ColombiaJune 5, 1907 · 183 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.5113 km WNW of Manta, EcuadorNovember 19, 1942 · 290 km SW 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 112,798 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1868M7.7
Guayaquil,Ibarra; Colombia: San Pablo
16 Aug 1868 · 134 km away · intensity X
70,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1797M8.3
Riobamba, Quito, Cuzco; Peru; Colombia
4 Feb 1797 · 277 km away · intensity XI
40,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1906M8.8
Off Coast
31 Jan 1906 · 22 km away · intensity IX
1,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1757M7.0
Cotopaxi,Tungurahua, Latacunga
22 Feb 1757 · 201 km away · intensity IX
1,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1923M6.2
Ipiales
14 Dec 1923 · 169 km away · intensity IX
300 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1936M5.6
Colombia
9 Jan 1936 · 192 km away · intensity VII
250 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.