Reviewed by USGSGuatemala33y ago
M4.2 earthquake 28 km SSW of Ocós, Guatemala
Sunday, November 21, 1993, 16:35:24 UTC · 14.282°N, 92.309°W
A magnitude 4.2 earthquake struck 28 km SSW of Ocós, Guatemala on Sunday, November 21, 1993, 16:35:24 UTC, at a depth of 61.6 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 4.2
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 62 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
30 tons of TNT
That is about 1/500 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 16 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
90 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Cocos and North American plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
62 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 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 382 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.726 km SSW of La Gomera, GuatemalaAugust 6, 1942 · 132 km E of this epicenter
- 7.34 km SSW of Puerto Madero, MexicoDecember 14, 1935 · 47 km N of this epicenter
- 7.334 km SW of Puerto Madero, MexicoApril 29, 1970 · 39 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.2127 km SW of La Esperanza (El Zapotal), MexicoMarch 30, 1914 · 183 km W of this epicenter
- 7.224 km W of Puerto Madero, MexicoSeptember 10, 1993 · 60 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.21 km NNW of Champerico, GuatemalaOctober 23, 1950 · 42 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 31 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 5,749 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1917M6.0
Guatemala City
26 Dec 1917 · 187 km away · intensity IX
2,650 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1902M7.5
Quezaltenango, San Marcos
19 Apr 1902 · 145 km away
2,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1773
St. Jago
3 Jun 1773 · 177 km away
600 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1874M7.1
Antigua,Chimaltenango,Amatitlan
3 Sep 1874 · 175 km away · intensity VIII
300 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1773M7.5
Antigua
29 Jul 1773 · 177 km away · intensity VIII
100 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1991M6.2
Guatemala City, Pachuta, Solola
18 Sep 1991 · 148 km away · intensity VI
25 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.