Reviewed by USGSMexico109y ago
M5.9 earthquake 6 km SSW of Condémbaro, Mexico
Thursday, May 16, 1918, 21:25:42 UTC · 19.236°N, 102.320°W
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 6 km SSW of Condémbaro, Mexico on Thursday, May 16, 1918, 21:25:42 UTC, at a depth of 65.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.7 on November 19, 1912.
- Magnitude
- 5.9
- Moderate · mw
- Depth
- 65 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 75 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
10 kilotons of TNT
That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 22 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
201 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
65 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 75 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.5 on June 7, 1918. 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 3 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 30 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 4,285 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1806M7.5
Jalisco,Oaxaca,Michoacan
25 Mar 1806 · 160 km away · intensity VIII
2,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1818M8.2
Morelos-Guerrero,Mexico City,Guadalajara
31 May 1818 · 171 km away · intensity X
2,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1912M6.7
Central, Acambay, Tixmadeje
19 Nov 1912 · 258 km away
202 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1847
Jalisco,Oaxaca,Michoacan
2 Oct 1847 · 136 km away · intensity IX
58 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1875M7.5
San Cristobal De La Barranca
11 Feb 1875 · 198 km away
25 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1911M7.6
Colima, Jalisco, Mexico City
7 Jun 1911 · 98 km away · intensity IX
Severe damage ($5–24M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.