QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.1md

Earthquake near Tallaboa, PR

No earthquake was likely felt in Tallaboa in the 24 hours to 7:52 pm AST (23:52 UTC). The last one was M 2.1, 9 km (5 mi) WNW, at 4:39 pm AST on 9 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Tallaboa

This page: a magnitude 2.1 earthquake was recorded 22 km (13 mi) south-southeast of Tallaboa, PR, at 3:46 pm AST on 29 September 2018 (19:46 UTC), 13 km deep.

USGS: 21 km SSE of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico

21 km (13 mi) S of Ponce, PR

3:46 pm AST, Sep 29, 2018 · · 13 km deep · released about 49 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Ponce Municipio 21 kmPeñuelas Municipio 25 kmJuana Díaz Municipio 26 kmGuayanilla Municipio 27 kmSanta Isabel Municipio 31 kmGuánica Municipio 33 kmYauco Municipio 38 kmVillalba Municipio 40 kmAdjuntas Municipio 43 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
3:46 pm AST on 29 September 2018 ()
Where
22 km (13 mi) south-southeast of Tallaboa, PR · earthquakes near Tallaboa
Magnitude
M 2.1 (md)
Depth
13 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Ponce Municipio, 21 km N
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2965 days ago

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

At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 12 km (7 mi) from the epicentre. In Tallaboa, 22 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, Potala Pastillo, Capitanejo, Aguilita, Magas Arriba, Tallaboa Alta.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 49 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.1 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 310,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 220,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 19× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.1 about 49 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 17.8133, -66.6441. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Ponce Municipio, PR 21 km (13 mi) N earthquakes near Ponce Municipio
Peñuelas Municipio, PR 25 km (16 mi) NNW earthquakes near Peñuelas Municipio
Juana Díaz Municipio, PR 26 km (16 mi) NE earthquakes near Juana Díaz Municipio
Guayanilla Municipio, PR 27 km (17 mi) NW earthquakes near Guayanilla Municipio
Santa Isabel Municipio, PR 31 km (19 mi) ENE earthquakes near Santa Isabel Municipio
Guánica Municipio, PR 33 km (21 mi) WNW earthquakes near Guánica Municipio

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.7 7 km ENE of Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico
  2. 2.0 10 km E of Maricao, Puerto Rico
  3. 1.9 8 km SE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  4. 1.9 5 km NW of Adjuntas, Puerto Rico
  5. 2.1 19 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  6. 2.0 5 km S of Magas Arriba, Puerto Rico
  7. 1.9 13 km SSW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  8. 1.6 12 km NE of Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico
  9. 2.2 11 km SSE of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  10. 1.9 6 km SSE of Ponce, Puerto Rico
  11. 2.1 1 km N of Fuig, Puerto Rico
  12. 2.1 1 km E of Fuig, Puerto Rico
  13. 1.9 3 km SE of Maria Antonia, Puerto Rico
  14. 2.3 9 km SE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  15. 1.8 13 km SSE of La Parguera, 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.