Reviewed by USGSPeru20y ago
M4.7 earthquake 38 km SW of San Vicente de Cañete, Peru
Wednesday, October 25, 2006, 15:03:07 UTC · 13.354°S, 76.599°W
A magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck 38 km SW of San Vicente de Cañete, Peru on Wednesday, October 25, 2006, 15:03:07 UTC, at a depth of 35.0 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.7 on October 20, 2006.
- Magnitude
- 4.7
- Light · mb
- Depth
- 35 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
125 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
35 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 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 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.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 211 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.221 km SE of Huacho, PeruMay 24, 1940 · 255 km N of this epicenter
- 8.121 km NNE of Minas de Marcona, PeruAugust 24, 1942 · 253 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.760 km SW of Changuillo, PeruNovember 12, 1996 · 208 km SE of this epicenter
- 7.677 km WSW of Callao, PeruOctober 3, 1974 · 177 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.287 km SW of Callao, PeruNovember 9, 1974 · 160 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.121 km SSE of Nazca, PeruJanuary 15, 1960 · 262 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.913 km SSW of San Juan, PeruOctober 3, 1916 · 297 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.710 km SSW of Huacho, PeruMay 24, 1940 · 265 km NW of this epicenter
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 · 164 km away · intensity XI
5,941 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1969M6.6
Huaytapallana, Lampa, Chilifruta
1 Oct 1969 · 238 km away · intensity XI
130 deaths$5 million damage
- 1974M8.1
Lima, Callao
3 Oct 1974 · 177 km away · intensity IX
78 deaths$10 million damagetsunami
- 1813
Ica
30 Mar 1813 · 154 km away · intensity VII
32 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1942M8.2
Ica, Nazca
24 Aug 1942 · 194 km away · intensity IX
30 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1828M8.3
Lima, Callao
30 Mar 1828 · 189 km away · intensity VII
30 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.