QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.6md

Earthquake near Coto Laurel, PR

No earthquake was likely felt in Coto Laurel in the 24 hours to 6:08 pm AST (22:08 UTC). The last one was M 3.0, 35 km (22 mi) WSW, at 3:45 am AST on 8 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Coto Laurel

This page: a magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 10 km (6 mi) northwest of Coto Laurel, PR, at 12:42 am AST on 18 October 2019 (04:42 UTC), 21 km deep.

USGS: 10 km NW of Coto Laurel, Puerto Rico

13 km (8 mi) N of Ponce, PR

12:42 am AST, Oct 18, 2019 · · 21 km deep · released about 7.1 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Coto Laurel Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Jayuya Municipio 11 kmPonce Municipio 13 kmVillalba Municipio 15 kmPeñuelas Municipio 16 kmAdjuntas Municipio 17 kmJuana Díaz Municipio 19 kmUtuado Municipio 19 kmOrocovis Municipio 22 kmCiales Municipio 22 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
12:42 am AST on 18 October 2019 ()
Where
10 km (6 mi) northwest of Coto Laurel, PR · earthquakes near Coto Laurel
Magnitude
M 1.6 (md)
Depth
21 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Jayuya Municipio, 11 km NNE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2582 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 Coto Laurel, 10 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: Jayuya, Luis Llorens Torres, Tallaboa Alta, Ponce, Adjuntas, Guayabal.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 7.1 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.6 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,100,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,500,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 130× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.6 about 7.1 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 one earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 5.8 12 km N of Garrochales, Puerto Rico · 50 km N of this epicentre

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 18.1196, -66.6155. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Jayuya Municipio, PR 11 km (7 mi) NNE earthquakes near Jayuya Municipio
Ponce Municipio, PR 13 km (8 mi) S earthquakes near Ponce Municipio
Villalba Municipio, PR 15 km (9 mi) E earthquakes near Villalba Municipio
Peñuelas Municipio, PR 16 km (10 mi) SW earthquakes near Peñuelas Municipio
Adjuntas Municipio, PR 17 km (10 mi) WNW earthquakes near Adjuntas Municipio
Juana Díaz Municipio, PR 19 km (12 mi) SE 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. 1.8 8 km ESE of Adjuntas, Puerto Rico
  2. 1.9 2 km E of Jauca, Puerto Rico
  3. 1.9 2 km ESE of Jauca, Puerto Rico
  4. 1.6 10 km SSE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  5. 2.0 7 km SW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  6. 1.7 6 km SSE of Jauca, Puerto Rico
  7. 2.1 10 km SSE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  8. 1.9 10 km SE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  9. 1.7 15 km S of Ponce, Puerto Rico
  10. 2.3 4 km SE of Jauca, Puerto Rico
  11. 1.9 9 km SW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  12. 2.1 4 km SSE of Salinas, Puerto Rico
  13. 2.2 2 km SSE of Salinas, Puerto Rico
  14. 2.5 2 km SSW of Sabana Hoyos, Puerto Rico
  15. 1.9 2 km SSW of Las Ochenta, 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.