Shallow M5.6 Earthquake struck on Thursday Morning 41mi from Mexico.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on April 18th, 2024. Last updated May 4th, 2024.

A shallow and significant MAG-5.6 earthquake struck 41 miles from Mexico in the morning of Thursday April 18th, 2024. Shaking may have been felt by a total of 2.1 million people.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake struck 41 miles (66 km) from Mexico The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 10 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Apr 18, 2024 08:12 (Hermosillo Time) - Apr 18, 2024 15:12 Universal Time.
Location:	152 km SSW of Ciudad Obregón, Sonora, Mexico. Coordinates 26°13'2"N 110°30'30"W.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.6 Detected by 42 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.048 .
Depth:	10 km (6 mi) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	V Moderate On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Low tsunami risk Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 do not usually cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Minimal impact predicted

Based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities, and a 96% chance that the number of fatalities falls no higher than 10.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 96% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls no higher than 10 million USD.

Roughly 2.1 million people exposed to shaking

An estimated 2.1 million have been exposed to shaking (An MMI or Modified Mercalli Intensity level II or higher) as a result of this earthquake according scientific estimates published by the USGS.

An estimated 522,300 people were exposed to level IV. At this level, light shaking and likely no damage can be expected. Intensity level III was experienced by the majority of people (around 1.6 million). In their region, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Mexico .

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Mexico . Huatabampo in Sonora, Mexico is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 110 kilometer (68 mi) southwest of Huatabampo. The intensity of shaking and damage in Huatabampo is estimated to be around level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (light shaking, likely no damage).

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Ciudad Obregón is located 152 km to the north-northeast and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Los Mochis is located 158 km to the east-southeast and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). La Paz is located 231 km to the south (intensity unknown, possibly low).

An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below. If places don't have intensity data available, it likely means the experienced impact in those places was fairly small.

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The intensity in shaking and damage by this earthquake is illustrated through the map below. The highest intensity measured for this earthquake is IV.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Shaking reported by 6 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 6 people have reported shaking in one place in Mexico.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Loreto, Baja California Sur, Mexico: 6 people.

28 Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 28 smaller aftershocks occurred. At a distance of 13 km (8 mi) north-northeast of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 2 days later. It measured a magnitude of 4.6

Before this earthquake struck, 43 smaller foreshocks occurred. Roughly 8 hrs before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-5.2 was detected nearby this earthquake.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

More earthquakes coming?

The risk of aftershocks decreases rapidly over time. Usually, aftershocks are at least one order of magnitude lower than a main shock.

The chance that a significant earthquake like this one is followed by an even larger earthquake is not so large. On average, scientists estimate a 94% chance that a major earthquake will not be followed by an even larger one. It is still adviced to be aware of this risk

Earthquakes like this are common in the region

Earthquakes of this strength occur quite regularly in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since November 4th, 2022, when a 6.1 magnitude earthquake hit 280 km (174 mi) further northwest. An even stronger magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck on September 13th, 2015.

In total, 5 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.6 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every 2 years.

Low tsunami risk

Based on early data it appears this earthquake was not strong enough (lower than MAG-6.5) to be likely to cause destructive tsunami's. However this earthquake appeared to have hit at a shallow depth under sea, so stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Sources

Last updated 04/05/24 16:28 (). As more information on this earthquake becomes available this article will be updated. This article is automatically composed based on data originating from multiple sources.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000mcxe
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20240418_0000201
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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