QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.3md

Earthquake near Ponce, PR

No earthquake was likely felt in Ponce in the 24 hours to 5:56 pm AST (21:56 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 2.3 earthquake was recorded 15 km (9 mi) southwest of Ponce, PR, at 5:01 pm AST on 16 December 2018 (21:01 UTC), 13 km deep.

USGS: Puerto Rico region

14 km (9 mi) SW of Ponce, PR

5:01 pm AST, Dec 16, 2018 · · 13 km deep · released about 82 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Ponce Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Peñuelas Municipio 13 kmGuayanilla Municipio 14 kmPonce Municipio 15 kmGuánica Municipio 23 kmYauco Municipio 25 kmJuana Díaz Municipio 26 kmAdjuntas Municipio 31 kmSabana Grande Municipio 32 kmSanta Isabel Municipio 35 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
5:01 pm AST on 16 December 2018 ()
Where
15 km (9 mi) southwest of Ponce, PR · earthquakes near Ponce
Magnitude
M 2.3 (md)
Depth
13 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Peñuelas Municipio, 13 km N
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2825 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 15 km (9 mi) from the epicentre. In Ponce, 15 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.

Likely felt in: Tallaboa 10 km, intensity II · Magas Arriba 14 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 82 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.3 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 180,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 130,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 12× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.3 about 82 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 17.9065, -66.7133. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Peñuelas Municipio, PR 13 km (8 mi) N earthquakes near Peñuelas Municipio
Guayanilla Municipio, PR 14 km (9 mi) NW earthquakes near Guayanilla Municipio
Ponce Municipio, PR 15 km (10 mi) NE earthquakes near Ponce Municipio
Guánica Municipio, PR 23 km (14 mi) WNW earthquakes near Guánica Municipio
Yauco Municipio, PR 25 km (16 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

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

  1. 2.1 8 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  2. 1.6 11 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  3. 1.8 3 km ENE of San Germán, Puerto Rico
  4. 1.5 3 km ESE of Ponce, Puerto Rico
  5. 1.8 3 km E of Ponce, Puerto Rico
  6. 1.7 6 km SSW of Capitanejo, Puerto Rico
  7. 2.0 8 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  8. 1.9 9 km S of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  9. 1.9 8 km S of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  10. 1.6 4 km SSE of Magas Arriba, Puerto Rico
  11. 1.8 3 km SSW of Peñuelas, Puerto Rico
  12. 2.0 3 km ENE of Ponce, Puerto Rico
  13. 2.0 2 km ENE of Pole Ojea, Puerto Rico
  14. 1.6 7 km S of Jauca, Puerto Rico
  15. 1.6 7 km S of Tallaboa, 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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