Reviewed by USGSEcuador44y ago
M4.8 earthquake 16 km NE of Yantzaza, Ecuador
Friday, April 15, 1983, 13:25:36 UTC · 3.712°S, 78.670°W
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 16 km NE of Yantzaza, Ecuador on Friday, April 15, 1983, 13:25:36 UTC, at a depth of 120.0 km (intermediate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.0 on April 12, 1983.
- Magnitude
- 4.8
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 120 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
239 tons of TNT
That is about 1/63 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 2 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
165 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the North Andes and South American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: intermediate
120 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 in the 30 days after this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 157 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.516 km W of Barranca, PeruSeptember 28, 1906 · 239 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.498 km ESE of Sucúa, EcuadorJuly 27, 1971 · 173 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.314 km NNE of Zorritos, PeruDecember 12, 1953 · 219 km W of this epicenter
- 7.323 km N of Bellavista, PeruMay 14, 1928 · 193 km S of this epicenter
- 7.29 km ENE of Papayal, PeruDecember 10, 1970 · 224 km W of this epicenter
- 7.115 km SSW of Huabal, PeruJuly 18, 1928 · 227 km S of this epicenter
- 7.092 km NNE of La Peca, PeruApril 12, 1983 · 141 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.813 km ESE of Huangala, PeruJuly 24, 1912 · 241 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 17 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 46,202 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1797M8.3
Riobamba, Quito, Cuzco; Peru; Colombia
4 Feb 1797 · 230 km away · intensity XI
40,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1949M6.5
Tungurahua
5 Aug 1949 · 278 km away
6,000 deaths$8 million damage
- 1970M7.6
N; Ecuador: S
10 Dec 1970 · 227 km away · intensity X
82 deaths$6 million damage
- 1924M6.9
Ecuador
3 Mar 1924 · 235 km away
40 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
- 1928M7.3
Chacahpoyas,Huancabamba,Cajamarca,Pinpincos
14 May 1928 · 192 km away · intensity X
29 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1968M6.8
San Martin,Moyobamba,Yantalo,Rioja,Lamas
19 Jun 1968 · 275 km away
15 deathsUnder $1 million damage
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.