QuakeScout
Magnitude4.5

Reviewed by USGSNicaragua25y ago

M4.5 earthquake 99 km SW of Jiquilillo, Nicaragua

Monday, March 12, 2001, 10:52:25 UTC · 12.207°N, 88.186°W

A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 99 km SW of Jiquilillo, Nicaragua on Monday, March 12, 2001, 10:52:25 UTC, at a depth of 33.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.1 on February 28, 2001.

Magnitude
4.5
Light · 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

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

56 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Indian and Burma 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 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 405 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 7.712 km NW of Chalatenango, El SalvadorSeptember 7, 1915 · 231 km NW of this epicenter
  2. 7.783 km SSW of Corinto, NicaraguaSeptember 2, 1992 · 106 km SE of this epicenter
  3. 7.728 km SSW of Puerto El Triunfo, El SalvadorJanuary 13, 2001 · 107 km NW of this epicenter
  4. 7.392 km SW of San Juan del Sur, NicaraguaDecember 30, 1907 · 251 km SE of this epicenter
  5. 7.318 km SSW of La Libertad, El SalvadorJune 19, 1982 · 181 km NW of this epicenter
  6. 7.27 km SW of El Viejo, NicaraguaMarch 28, 1921 · 114 km NE of this epicenter
  7. 7.2116 km SW of Corinto, NicaraguaJuly 1, 1907 · 71 km SE of this epicenter
  8. 7.1113 km SSW of Puerto El Triunfo, El SalvadorFebruary 8, 1926 · 67 km W of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 62 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 19,905 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1972M6.2

    Managua

    23 Dec 1972 · 228 km away

    10,000 deaths$3.0 billion damage

  2. 1931M5.6

    Managua

    31 Mar 1931 · 291 km away

    2,450 deaths$15 million damage

  3. 1986M5.4

    San Salvador

    10 Oct 1986 · 207 km away

    1,100 deaths$1.5 billion damage

  4. 1951M6.5

    Jucuapa

    6 May 1951 · 98 km away

    1,100 deaths$23 million damage

  5. 1854

    San Salvador

    14 Apr 1854 · 208 km away

    1,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)

  6. 1930

    Managua

    31 Mar 1930 · 216 km away

    1,000 deaths$15 million damage

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

Nearby trackers

Closest city pages