QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.5md

Earthquake near Ponce, PR

No earthquake was likely felt in Ponce in the 24 hours to 3:33 pm AST (19:33 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 1.5 earthquake was recorded 14 km (9 mi) southwest of Ponce, PR, at 1:14 am AST on 15 May 2019 (05:14 UTC), 16 km deep.

USGS: Puerto Rico region

14 km (8 mi) SW of Ponce, PR

1:14 am AST, May 15, 2019 · · 16 km deep · released about 5.7 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Ponce Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Peñuelas Municipio 11 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
1:14 am AST on 15 May 2019 ()
Where
14 km (9 mi) southwest of Ponce, PR · earthquakes near Ponce
Magnitude
M 1.5 (md)
Depth
16 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Peñuelas Municipio, 11 km N
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2737 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 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 5.7 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 2,600,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,900,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 170× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.5 about 5.7 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 17.9241, -66.7240. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Peñuelas Municipio, PR 11 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

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

  1. 2.3 12 km S of Pole Ojea, Puerto Rico
  2. 1.8 6 km W of Fuig, Puerto Rico
  3. 2.0 2 km WSW of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  4. 1.5 5 km NE of Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico
  5. 2.4 3 km WNW of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  6. 2.4 12 km S of Salinas, Puerto Rico
  7. 1.9 5 km N of Peñuelas, Puerto Rico
  8. 2.1 8 km S of Indios, Puerto Rico
  9. 1.8 1 km SSE of Hormigueros, Puerto Rico
  10. 1.6 Puerto Rico region
  11. 2.1 8 km NNE of Lluveras, Puerto Rico
  12. 1.9 28 km SSE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  13. 2.0 5 km SW of Adjuntas, Puerto Rico
  14. 1.9 6 km SSE of Tallaboa, Puerto Rico
  15. 2.4 5 km NE of Sabana Grande, 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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