QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.8md

Earthquake near Ponce, PR

No earthquake was likely felt in Ponce in the 24 hours to 7:06 am AST (11:06 UTC). The last one was M 3.0, 26 km (16 mi) WSW, at 3:45 am AST on 8 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Ponce

This page: a magnitude 1.8 earthquake was recorded 14 km (9 mi) southwest of Ponce, PR, at 5:37 am AST on 16 December 2018 (09:37 UTC), 13 km deep.

USGS: Puerto Rico region

14 km (9 mi) SW of Ponce, PR

5:37 am AST, Dec 16, 2018 · · 13 km deep · released about 17 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Ponce Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Peñuelas Municipio 12 kmGuayanilla Municipio 12 kmPonce Municipio 15 kmGuánica Municipio 21 kmYauco Municipio 23 kmJuana Díaz Municipio 26 kmAdjuntas Municipio 29 kmSabana Grande Municipio 30 kmLajas Municipio 34 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
5:37 am AST on 16 December 2018 ()
Where
14 km (9 mi) southwest of Ponce, PR · earthquakes near Ponce
Magnitude
M 1.8 (md)
Depth
13 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Peñuelas Municipio, 12 km N
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2888 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 5 km (3 mi) from the epicentre. In Ponce, 14 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: Tallaboa, Magas Arriba, Indios, Guayanilla, Tallaboa Alta, Peñuelas.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 17 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.8 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 900,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 640,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 57× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.8 about 17 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.

Where

Epicentre 17.9225, -66.7246. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Peñuelas Municipio, PR 12 km (7 mi) N earthquakes near Peñuelas Municipio
Guayanilla Municipio, PR 12 km (7 mi) NW earthquakes near Guayanilla Municipio
Ponce Municipio, PR 15 km (9 mi) NE earthquakes near Ponce Municipio
Guánica Municipio, PR 21 km (13 mi) W earthquakes near Guánica Municipio
Yauco Municipio, PR 23 km (14 mi) NW earthquakes near Yauco Municipio
Juana Díaz Municipio, PR 26 km (16 mi) ENE earthquakes near Juana Díaz Municipio

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.6 7 km S of Jauca, Puerto Rico
  2. 1.6 7 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  3. 1.6 4 km ESE of Maricao, Puerto Rico
  4. 1.8 8 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  5. 1.6 5 km SSW of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  6. 1.8 9 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  7. 1.5 7 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  8. 1.9 4 km SSW of Palmarejo, Puerto Rico
  9. 2.0 5 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  10. 2.0 8 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  11. 1.9 6 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  12. 1.6 6 km SSW of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  13. 1.7 5 km E of Hormigueros, Puerto Rico
  14. 2.0 4 km SE of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  15. 2.0 2 km E of Ponce, 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

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