Reviewed by USGSPeru14d ago
M4.5 earthquake 63 km WSW of Santiago, Peru
Saturday, September 12, 2026, 08:46:38 UTC · 14.486°S, 76.216°W
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 63 km WSW of Santiago, Peru on Saturday, September 12, 2026, 08:46:38 UTC, at a depth of 24.1 km (shallow). USGS received 1 “Did You Feel It?” report, with a maximum reported intensity of II (weak). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.5 on September 12, 2026.
- Magnitude
- 4.5
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 24 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 1
- Max intensity II
- 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
85 tons of TNT
That is about 1/178 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 6 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
70 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and South American plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
24 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
Reports sent by people to USGS, grouped by place (most reports first). Intensity uses the Modified Mercalli scale (I–X): what people felt, not the magnitude.
| Place | Intensity | Reports | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vista Alegre, Ica, Peru | II · Weak | 1 | 75 km |
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 50 km
USGS has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km since this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 400 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.121 km NNE of Minas de Marcona, PeruAugust 24, 1942 · 142 km SE of this epicenter
- 8.041 km SW of San Vicente de Cañete, PeruAugust 15, 2007 · 129 km N of this epicenter
- 7.760 km SW of Changuillo, PeruNovember 12, 1996 · 81 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.210 km WSW of Atiquipa, PeruJune 28, 2024 · 241 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.287 km SW of Callao, PeruNovember 9, 1974 · 278 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.121 km SSE of Nazca, PeruJanuary 15, 1960 · 156 km E of this epicenter
- 7.137 km W of Atiquipa, PeruJanuary 14, 2018 · 216 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.116 km WSW of Atiquipa, PeruSeptember 25, 2013 · 237 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 47 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 6,762 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1746M8.0
Lima, Callao
29 Oct 1746 · 297 km away · intensity XI
5,941 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 2007M8.0
Ica, Pisco, Lima
15 Aug 2007 · 129 km away · intensity VIII
596 deaths$600 million damagetsunami
- 1974M8.1
Lima, Callao
3 Oct 1974 · 299 km away · intensity IX
78 deaths$10 million damagetsunami
- 1813
Ica
30 Mar 1813 · 98 km away · intensity VII
32 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1942M8.2
Ica, Nazca
24 Aug 1942 · 62 km away · intensity IX
30 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1996M7.7
Chincha Alta, Acari, Nazca, Marcona
12 Nov 1996 · 81 km away · intensity VIII
14 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.