Reviewed by USGSEl Salvador25y ago
M4.7 earthquake 40 km S of El Rosario, El Salvador
Wednesday, May 2, 2001, 07:05:52 UTC · 13.135°N, 89.017°W
A magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck 40 km S of El Rosario, El Salvador on Wednesday, May 2, 2001, 07:05:52 UTC, at a depth of 46.2 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.4 on April 16, 2001.
- Magnitude
- 4.7
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 46 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 earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
169 tons of TNT
That is about 1/89 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 3 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
112 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Caribbean and Cocos plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
46 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 lists 4 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.3 on May 14, 2001. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 451 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.712 km NW of Chalatenango, El SalvadorSeptember 7, 1915 · 110 km N of this epicenter
- 7.783 km SSW of Corinto, NicaraguaSeptember 2, 1992 · 239 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.726 km SSW of La Gomera, GuatemalaAugust 6, 1942 · 246 km W of this epicenter
- 7.728 km SSW of Puerto El Triunfo, El SalvadorJanuary 13, 2001 · 40 km E of this epicenter
- 7.57 km N of Los Amates, GuatemalaFebruary 4, 1976 · 244 km N of this epicenter
- 7.318 km SSW of La Libertad, El SalvadorJune 19, 1982 · 46 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.27 km SW of El Viejo, NicaraguaMarch 28, 1921 · 204 km E of this epicenter
- 7.2116 km SW of Corinto, NicaraguaJuly 1, 1907 · 207 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 67 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 35,153 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1976M7.5
Chimaltenango, Guatemala City
4 Feb 1976 · 244 km away · intensity IX
23,000 deaths$2.1 billion damagetsunami
- 1917M6.0
Guatemala City
26 Dec 1917 · 236 km away · intensity IX
2,650 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
- 1902M7.5
Quezaltenango, San Marcos
19 Apr 1902 · 235 km away
2,000 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1986M5.4
San Salvador
10 Oct 1986 · 78 km away
1,100 deaths$1.5 billion damage
- 1951M6.5
Jucuapa
6 May 1951 · 133 km away
1,100 deaths$23 million damage
- 1854
San Salvador
14 Apr 1854 · 77 km away
1,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.