Earthquake near Sabana Grande, PR

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 7 km (4 mi) from the epicentre. In Sabana Grande, 6 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: Maricao, Liborio Negron Torres, Lluveras, San Germán, Yauco, Palomas.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 35 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.0 would have released about 32 times as much.

1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 440,000× the energy of this one
2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 310,000× the energy of this one
3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 28× the energy of this one
4. This earthquake M 2.0 about 35 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 lists 4 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km:

1. 6.3 6 km WNW of Aguadilla, Puerto Rico · 46 km NW of this epicentre Oct 25, 1918
2. 5.8 4 km E of Moca, Puerto Rico · 34 km NNW of this epicentre May 16, 2010
3. 5.2 19 km SW of Stella, Puerto Rico · 46 km W of this epicentre Dec 17, 2011
4. 5.1 21 km SW of Stella, Puerto Rico · 46 km W of this epicentre Dec 17, 2011

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 18.1231, -66.9355. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

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

Aftershocks so far

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

1. 1.8 6 km NNE of Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico 10:45 UTC
2. 1.7 4 km SSW of Liborio Negron Torres, Puerto Rico 05:25 UTC
3. 1.8 1 km S of La Parguera, Puerto Rico 05:21 UTC
4. 1.7 2 km SSW of La Parguera, Puerto Rico 05:01 UTC
5. 1.8 3 km SSE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico 04:42 UTC
6. 1.9 4 km WNW of San Sebastián, Puerto Rico 02:51 UTC
7. 1.9 4 km SE of Piedra Gorda, Puerto Rico 10:18 UTC
8. 1.5 2 km NW of Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico 08:37 UTC
9. 1.9 5 km E of Maricao, Puerto Rico 08:07 UTC
10. 1.8 2 km N of Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico 02:49 UTC
11. 1.5 1 km NNE of Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico 02:45 UTC
12. 1.9 Puerto Rico region 00:46 UTC
13. 1.8 2 km WNW of Hormigueros, Puerto Rico 00:35 UTC
14. 1.8 7 km NNW of Villalba, Puerto Rico 11:32 UTC
15. 1.8 4 km SE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico 10:39 UTC

Counted from the QuakeIndex database, which ingests the USGS feed every 30 seconds · as of 20:36 UTC. QuakeIndex does not forecast aftershocks. When USGS issues an operational aftershock forecast it appears on the USGS event page.

On USGS

• The official USGS event page — the source of record for every value above
• Did you feel it? Report it to USGS — reports go to USGS, not to us
• ShakeMap for this event, when USGS has produced one

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