Reviewed by USGSPeru52y ago
M5.0 earthquake 125 km SW of Huarmey, Peru
Tuesday, November 12, 1974, 00:53:54 UTC · 10.733°S, 79.084°W
A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 125 km SW of Huarmey, Peru on Tuesday, November 12, 1974, 00:53:54 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.2 on November 9, 1974.
- Magnitude
- 5.0
- Moderate · mb
- Depth
- 33 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
477 tons of TNT
That is about 1/32 of the Hiroshima bomb. Each whole step in magnitude is about 32 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
80 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
33 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 50 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.221 km SE of Huacho, PeruMay 24, 1940 · 188 km E of this epicenter
- 8.167 km W of Paramonga, PeruOctober 17, 1966 · 70 km E of this epicenter
- 7.934 km SW of Chimbote, PeruMay 31, 1970 · 165 km N of this epicenter
- 7.677 km WSW of Callao, PeruOctober 3, 1974 · 221 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.287 km SW of Callao, PeruNovember 9, 1974 · 242 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.155 km SW of Santiago de Cao, PeruJune 21, 1937 · 280 km N of this epicenter
- 7.0179 km WSW of Huarmey, PeruSeptember 3, 1967 · 67 km W of this epicenter
- 6.928 km W of Paramonga, PeruSeptember 24, 1963 · 109 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 24 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 74,657 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1970M7.9
Northern, Pisco, Chiclayo
31 May 1970 · 173 km away · intensity X
66,794 deaths$530 million damagetsunami
- 1746M8.0
Lima, Callao
29 Oct 1746 · 249 km away · intensity XI
5,941 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1725M7.7
Trujillo, Ancash, Lima
7 Jan 1725 · 193 km away · intensity IX
1,500 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1940M8.2
Peru
24 May 1940 · 229 km away · intensity X
179 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1966M8.1
Lima,Huacho,Huaura, Chancay,Supe,San Nicolas
17 Oct 1966 · 49 km away · intensity IX
110 deaths$35 million damagetsunami
- 1974M8.1
Lima, Callao
3 Oct 1974 · 222 km away · intensity IX
78 deaths$10 million damagetsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.