QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.5md

Earthquake near Tallaboa Alta, PR

No earthquake was likely felt in Tallaboa Alta in the 24 hours to 7:49 pm AST (23:49 UTC). The last one was M 2.1, 10 km (6 mi) WSW, at 4:39 pm AST on 9 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Tallaboa Alta

This page: a magnitude 1.5 earthquake was recorded 5 km (3 mi) east of Tallaboa Alta, PR, at 6:51 pm AST on 28 July 2018 (22:51 UTC), 13 km deep.

USGS: 4 km E of Tallaboa Alta, Puerto Rico

6 km (4 mi) NNW of Ponce, PR

6:51 pm AST, Jul 28, 2018 · · 13 km deep · released about 5.9 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Tallaboa Alta Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Ponce Municipio 7 kmPeñuelas Municipio 8 kmGuayanilla Municipio 16 kmJuana Díaz Municipio 18 kmAdjuntas Municipio 19 kmJayuya Municipio 20 kmVillalba Municipio 22 kmYauco Municipio 22 kmUtuado Municipio 26 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
6:51 pm AST on 28 July 2018 ()
Where
5 km (3 mi) east of Tallaboa Alta, PR · earthquakes near Tallaboa Alta
Magnitude
M 1.5 (md)
Depth
13 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Ponce Municipio, 7 km SE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3028 days ago

This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

At this magnitude and depth it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Tallaboa Alta, 5 km away, the estimate is intensity II (weak). Estimated from magnitude, depth and distance with the intensity equation USGS Did You Feel It? uses; felt reports, where there are any, are the measurement.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Ponce, Peñuelas, Tallaboa, Santo Domingo, Coto Laurel, Magas Arriba.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 5.9 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.5 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,500,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,800,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 160× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.5 about 5.9 lb of TNT

Energy from the Gutenberg–Richter relation (log10E = 1.5M + 4.8), rounded to two figures; bar length is magnitude, which is already a logarithm of energy. Magnitudes of past earthquakes from the USGS catalogue.

For this area

No earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded within 50 km since our catalogue begins in 2016.

Before 2016, the USGS record since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.

Since 2016: the QuakeIndex catalogue (US, M1.5+), built from the USGS FDSN event service. Before 2016: USGS ComCat, M5+ from 1900. Distances are between epicentres. This is the record, not a forecast.

Where

Epicentre 18.0456, -66.6553. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Ponce Municipio, PR 7 km (4 mi) SE earthquakes near Ponce Municipio
Peñuelas Municipio, PR 8 km (5 mi) WSW earthquakes near Peñuelas Municipio
Guayanilla Municipio, PR 16 km (10 mi) WSW earthquakes near Guayanilla Municipio
Juana Díaz Municipio, PR 18 km (11 mi) ESE earthquakes near Juana Díaz Municipio
Adjuntas Municipio, PR 19 km (12 mi) NW earthquakes near Adjuntas Municipio
Jayuya Municipio, PR 20 km (12 mi) NNE earthquakes near Jayuya Municipio

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

42 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 2.5 14 km SSW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  2. 2.4 14 km SSW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  3. 1.7 8 km S of Villalba, Puerto Rico
  4. 2.0 4 km WSW of Ponce, Puerto Rico
  5. 1.7 2 km NNE of Santo Domingo, Puerto Rico
  6. 2.7 4 km ESE of Florida, Puerto Rico
  7. 2.1 4 km SSW of San Sebastián, Puerto Rico
  8. 1.6 4 km SSW of Adjuntas, Puerto Rico
  9. 2.1 3 km N of Santo Domingo, Puerto Rico
  10. 1.7 4 km ESE of Maricao, Puerto Rico
  11. 1.9 4 km SE of Lajas, Puerto Rico
  12. 2.2 1 km SSE of Adjuntas, Puerto Rico
  13. 1.6 3 km SW of Adjuntas, Puerto Rico
  14. 2.1 3 km E of Hormigueros, Puerto Rico
  15. 2.5 4 km N of San Germán, Puerto Rico

Counted from the QuakeIndex database, which ingests the USGS feed every 30 seconds · as of . QuakeIndex does not forecast aftershocks. When USGS issues an operational aftershock forecast it appears on the USGS event page.

On USGS

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.