Reviewed by USGSPeru87y ago
M6.3 earthquake 51 km W of Pimentel, Peru
Sunday, May 5, 1940, 02:03:45 UTC · 6.895°S, 80.395°W
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck 51 km W of Pimentel, Peru on Sunday, May 5, 1940, 02:03:45 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.1 on June 21, 1937.
- Magnitude
- 6.3
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 15 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
38 kilotons of TNT
That is about 3 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 80 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
136 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
15 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:
- 7.323 km N of Bellavista, PeruMay 14, 1928 · 250 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.155 km SW of Santiago de Cao, PeruJune 21, 1937 · 175 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.115 km SSW of Huabal, PeruJuly 18, 1928 · 203 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.813 km ESE of Huangala, PeruJuly 24, 1912 · 223 km N of this epicenter
- 6.3115 km SSW of Sechura, PeruDecember 27, 1925 · 107 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.334 km NNE of Las Pirias, PeruMay 15, 1928 · 252 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.220 km WNW of Las Lomas, PeruSeptember 25, 1914 · 254 km N of this epicenter
- 6.1252 km SW of Pacasmayo, PeruJuly 14, 1927 · 233 km SW of this epicenter
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 1,529 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1725M7.7
Trujillo, Ancash, Lima
7 Jan 1725 · 280 km away · intensity IX
1,500 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1928M7.3
Chacahpoyas,Huancabamba,Cajamarca,Pinpincos
14 May 1928 · 251 km away · intensity X
29 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1912M7.0
Huancabamba,Cajamarca; Ecuador: Guayaquil
24 Jul 1912 · 142 km away · intensity X
Severe damage ($5–24M)
- 1928M7.0
Peru
18 Jul 1928 · 219 km away · intensity VI
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.