M6.7 earthquake 52 km SW of San Vicente de Cañete, Peru

Friday, October 20, 2006, 10:48:56 UTC · 13.457°S, 76.677°W

A magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck 52 km SW of San Vicente de Cañete, Peru on Friday, October 20, 2006, 10:48:56 UTC, at a depth of 23.0 km (shallow). USGS received 90 “Did You Feel It?” reports, with a maximum reported intensity of V (moderate). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M7.7 on November 12, 1996.

Magnitude: 6.7; Strong · mwc
Depth: 23 km; Shallow
Felt reports: 90; Max intensity V
Est. shaking: VI; Strong (ShakeMap)
PAGER alert: None; Not issued
Tsunami: No flag; USGS feed

Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 100 km aftershock search areaColoured lines: estimated shaking intensity (USGS ShakeMap)

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

169 kilotons of TNT

That is about 11 times the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 355 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

111 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Nazca and South American plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: shallow

23 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

Reports sent by people to USGS, grouped by place (most reports first). Intensity uses the Modified Mercalli scale (I–X): what people felt, not the magnitude.

Place	Intensity	Reports	Distance
Lima, Lima Provincias, Peru	IV · Light	80	160 km
Pisco, Ica, Peru	V · Moderate	2	61 km
San Luis, Lima Provincias, Peru	IV · Light	2	157 km
Ica, Ica, Peru	IV · Light	1	122 km
Chincha Alta, Ica, Peru	IV · Light	1	62 km
Chaclacayo, Lima y Callao, Peru	III · Weak	1	166 km
Chiclayo, Lambayeque, Peru	III · Weak	1	818 km
Chosica, Lima Provincias, Peru	III · Weak	1	170 km
Nuevo Imperial, Lima Provincias, Peru	III · Weak	1	60 km

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 100 km

USGS lists 4 M2.5+ earthquakes within 100 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M6.0 on October 26, 2006. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 207 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 41 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 6,319 recorded deaths. The most severe:

1746M8.0
Lima, Callao
29 Oct 1746 · 172 km away · intensity XI
5,941 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
1969M6.6
Huaytapallana, Lampa, Chilifruta
1 Oct 1969 · 252 km away · intensity XI
130 deaths$5 million damage
1974M8.1
Lima, Callao
3 Oct 1974 · 179 km away · intensity IX
78 deaths$10 million damagetsunami
1813
Ica
30 Mar 1813 · 155 km away · intensity VII
32 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
1942M8.2
Ica, Nazca
24 Aug 1942 · 186 km away · intensity IX
30 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
1828M8.3
Lima, Callao
30 Mar 1828 · 192 km away · intensity VII
30 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

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

Nearby trackers