Reviewed by USGSMexico102y ago
M6.9 earthquake 4 km NNW of El Palmarcito, Mexico
Thursday, December 10, 1925, 14:14:57 UTC · 15.532°N, 93.234°W
A magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck 4 km NNW of El Palmarcito, Mexico on Thursday, December 10, 1925, 14:14:57 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.1 on February 4, 1921.
- Magnitude
- 6.9
- Strong · mw
- Depth
- 35 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
374 kilotons of TNT
That is about 25 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 785 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
170 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Cocos and North American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
35 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 19 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.2127 km SW of La Esperanza (El Zapotal), MexicoMarch 30, 1914 · 130 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.132 km NE of Chajul, GuatemalaFebruary 4, 1921 · 262 km E of this epicenter
- 7.07 km N of Jesús Carranza, MexicoJune 2, 1916 · 291 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.031 km SE of Champerico, GuatemalaApril 17, 1919 · 229 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.933 km WSW of Puerto Madero, MexicoDecember 9, 1912 · 118 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 13 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 3,023 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1902M7.5
Quezaltenango, San Marcos
19 Apr 1902 · 294 km away
2,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1773
St. Jago
3 Jun 1773 · 291 km away
600 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1874M7.1
Antigua,Chimaltenango,Amatitlan
3 Sep 1874 · 295 km away · intensity VIII
300 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1773M7.5
Antigua
29 Jul 1773 · 291 km away · intensity VIII
100 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1816M7.5
Soloma
22 Jul 1816 · 186 km away · intensity IX
23 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1902M7.8
Venustiano Carranza,Chiapas,Chis,Tabasco
23 Sep 1902 · 137 km away · intensity VIII
Severe damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.