QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 5.3mwp

Earthquake near La Parguera, PR

No earthquake was likely felt in La Parguera in the 24 hours to 4:30 am AST (08:30 UTC). The last one was M 2.1, 9 km (5 mi) WNW, at 11:57 pm AST on 8 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near La Parguera

This page: a magnitude 5.3 earthquake was recorded 9 km (6 mi) south-southeast of La Parguera, PR, at 4:49 pm AST on 3 July 2020 (20:49 UTC), 3.0 km deep. 346 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 9 km SSE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico

42 km (26 mi) WSW of Ponce, PR · 37 km (23 mi) SSE of Mayagüez, PR

4:49 pm AST, Jul 3, 2020 · · 3.0 km deep · released about 1.3 kilotons of TNT

Every earthquake near La Parguera Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Lajas Municipio 10 kmGuánica Municipio 10 kmSabana Grande Municipio 21 kmCabo Rojo Municipio 22 kmSan Germán Municipio 23 kmGuayanilla Municipio 25 kmYauco Municipio 26 kmHormigueros Municipio 29 kmMaricao Municipio 31 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
4:49 pm AST on 3 July 2020 ()
Where
9 km (6 mi) south-southeast of La Parguera, PR · earthquakes near La Parguera
Magnitude
M 5.3 (mwp)
Depth
3.0 km below the surface
Felt
346 reports · strongest reported intensity VII
Measured shaking
intensity VI (ShakeMap)
USGS impact alert
green
Nearest
Lajas Municipio, 10 km NNW
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 324 days ago

This was a moderate earthquake. Shaking at this size can damage poorly built structures close to the epicentre.

At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 232 km (144 mi) from the epicentre. In La Parguera, 9 km away, the estimate is intensity V (moderate). 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: San Germán 21 km, intensity V · Pole Ojea 21 km, intensity V · Yauco 22 km, intensity V · Guayanilla 26 km, intensity IV · Puerto Real 27 km, intensity IV · Magas Arriba 28 km, intensity IV · Tallaboa 32 km, intensity IV · Tallaboa Alta 36 km, intensity IV. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 1.3 kilotons of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 6.3 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 130× the energy of this one
  2. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 5.6× the energy of this one
  3. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 4× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 5.3 about 1.3 kilotons of TNT
  5. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 2,800× more

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

The largest earthquake within 50 km since 2016 was M 6.4 on 2020-01-07 — about 45 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists one earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 5.1 21 km SW of Stella, Puerto Rico · 49 km NW 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 17.8995, -67.0048. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Lajas Municipio, PR 10 km (6 mi) NNW earthquakes near Lajas Municipio
Guánica Municipio, PR 10 km (6 mi) ENE earthquakes near Guánica Municipio
Sabana Grande Municipio, PR 21 km (13 mi) NNE earthquakes near Sabana Grande Municipio
Cabo Rojo Municipio, PR 22 km (13 mi) WNW earthquakes near Cabo Rojo Municipio
San Germán Municipio, PR 23 km (15 mi) N earthquakes near San Germán Municipio
Guayanilla Municipio, PR 25 km (15 mi) ENE earthquakes near Guayanilla 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. 2.5 5 km SSW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  2. 3.0 7 km SW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  3. 2.4 4 km E of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  4. 2.3 1 km NW of Indios, Puerto Rico
  5. 2.9 7 km WSW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  6. 3.1 7 km SW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  7. 3.3 5 km SE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  8. 3.4 8 km SW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  9. 3.1 6 km ESE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  10. 2.8 3 km SE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  11. 1.6 6 km WSW of Guánica, Puerto Rico
  12. 2.9 5 km ESE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  13. 2.6 5 km SSE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  14. 2.3 6 km ESE of La Parguera, Puerto Rico
  15. 2.2 5 km ESE of La Parguera, 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.