Reviewed by USGSChile91y ago
M6.4 earthquake 19 km NE of Tomé, Chile
Thursday, October 15, 1936, 21:08:46 UTC · 36.491°S, 72.797°W
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck 19 km NE of Tomé, Chile on Thursday, October 15, 1936, 21:08:46 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.2 on December 2, 1928.
- Magnitude
- 6.4
- 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
60 kilotons of TNT
That is about 4 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 126 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
133 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 23 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.730 km NNE of Constitución, ChileDecember 1, 1928 · 164 km N of this epicenter
- 7.7103 km NW of Constitución, ChileJanuary 30, 1914 · 198 km N of this epicenter
- 7.350 km SSW of Carahue, ChileDecember 10, 1920 · 296 km S of this epicenter
- 7.247 km NW of Cauquenes, ChileDecember 2, 1928 · 87 km N of this epicenter
- 7.019 km SW of Angol, ChileAugust 20, 1920 · 158 km S of this epicenter
- 6.3210 km WNW of Constitución, ChileSeptember 6, 1926 · 258 km NW of this epicenter
- 6.213 km S of Constitución, ChileDecember 1, 1928 · 120 km N of this epicenter
- 6.21 km W of Carahue, ChileNovember 6, 1923 · 249 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 12 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 403 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1928M7.6
Talca, Chillan, Santiago, San Fernando
1 Dec 1928 · 181 km away · intensity IX
279 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1751M8.5
Concepcion, Chillan, Talca, Tutuben, Curico
25 May 1751 · 111 km away · intensity XI
65 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1835M8.2
Concepcion
20 Feb 1835 · 43 km away · intensity XI
53 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1898M6.5
Concepcion
23 Jul 1898 · 43 km away · intensity VIII
6 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1871M7.5
Central
25 Mar 1871 · 168 km away
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1920M7.0
Off Coast Central
20 Aug 1920 · 179 km away
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.