Reviewed by USGSPeru5d ago
M4.5 earthquake 4 km W of Victor Raul, Peru
Monday, September 21, 2026, 03:58:24 UTC · 8.397°S, 78.865°W
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 4 km W of Victor Raul, Peru on Monday, September 21, 2026, 03:58:24 UTC, at a depth of 73.1 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M4.5 on August 31, 2026.
- Magnitude
- 4.5
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 73 km
- Intermediate
- 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
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
231 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: intermediate
73 km
Intermediate-depth earthquakes usually break inside a plate that is sinking into the mantle. Shaking spreads over a wide area but is gentler at the epicenter than a shallow quake of the same size.
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 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 202 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.167 km W of Paramonga, PeruOctober 17, 1966 · 261 km S of this epicenter
- 7.934 km SW of Chimbote, PeruMay 31, 1970 · 97 km S of this epicenter
- 7.6103 km WSW of Mórrope, PeruNovember 20, 1960 · 289 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.5123 km WSW of Puerto Santa, PeruFebruary 21, 1996 · 155 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.155 km SW of Santiago de Cao, PeruJune 21, 1937 · 85 km W of this epicenter
- 7.115 km SSW of Huabal, PeruJuly 18, 1928 · 297 km N of this epicenter
- 7.0179 km WSW of Huarmey, PeruSeptember 3, 1967 · 265 km S of this epicenter
- 6.928 km W of Paramonga, PeruSeptember 24, 1963 · 264 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 16 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 69,304 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1970M7.9
Northern, Pisco, Chiclayo
31 May 1970 · 90 km away · intensity X
66,794 deaths$530 million damagetsunami
- 1725M7.7
Trujillo, Ancash, Lima
7 Jan 1725 · 69 km away · intensity IX
1,500 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1946M7.3
Jocaibamba,Cerro Angaschaj,Cerro Sillapata
10 Nov 1946 · 151 km away · intensity XI
800 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1966M8.1
Lima,Huacho,Huaura, Chancay,Supe,San Nicolas
17 Oct 1966 · 263 km away · intensity IX
110 deaths$35 million damagetsunami
- 1960M6.7
Peru
20 Nov 1960 · 269 km away
66 deathsUnder $1 million damagetsunami
- 1972M6.1
Juanjui
20 Mar 1972 · 289 km away · intensity IX
12 deaths$20 million damage
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.