Reviewed by USGSEl Salvador102y ago
M7.1 earthquake 113 km SSW of Puerto El Triunfo, El Salvador
Monday, February 8, 1926, 15:18:01 UTC · 12.292°N, 88.801°W
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck 113 km SSW of Puerto El Triunfo, El Salvador on Monday, February 8, 1926, 15:18:01 UTC, at a depth of 20.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.2 on March 28, 1921.
- Magnitude
- 7.1
- Major · mw
- Depth
- 20 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Did You Feel It?
- Est. shaking
- V
- Moderate (ShakeMap)
- PAGER alert
- None
- Not issued
- Tsunami
- No flag
- USGS feed
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 200 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
747 kilotons of TNT
That is about 50 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 1,567 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
35 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Caribbean and Cocos plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
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 200 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 200 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.7 on February 15, 1926. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 20 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.712 km NW of Chalatenango, El SalvadorSeptember 7, 1915 · 205 km N of this epicenter
- 7.27 km SW of El Viejo, NicaraguaMarch 28, 1921 · 176 km E of this epicenter
- 7.2116 km SW of Corinto, NicaraguaJuly 1, 1907 · 125 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.0off the coast of Central AmericaAugust 16, 1909 · 247 km SW of this epicenter
- 6.78 km S of San Juan Opico, El SalvadorJune 8, 1917 · 179 km N of this epicenter
- 6.7108 km SSW of Puerto El Triunfo, El SalvadorMay 1, 1924 · 27 km NW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 27 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 2,342 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1854
San Salvador
14 Apr 1854 · 173 km away
1,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1873
Santa Tomas, San Vicente
4 Mar 1873 · 154 km away
800 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1873
Salvador,San Vicente
11 Apr 1873 · 147 km away
300 deaths
- 1902M7.0
El Salvador-Guatemala
26 Feb 1902 · 154 km away
185 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1765
Chiquimula
20 Apr 1765 · 162 km away
50 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1915M7.7
El Salvador
7 Sep 1915 · 205 km away · intensity VIII
7 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.