On Friday Night an Unusually powerful M7.2 Earthquake struck in the South Pacific Ocean near Minas de Marcona (Peru).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on June 28th, 2024. Last updated July 1st, 2024.

In the South Pacific Ocean 98 kilometer from Minas de Marcona, Peru, an unusually powerful Magnitude 7.2 earthquake occurred in the night of Friday June 28th, 2024. The USGS has indicated there is a potential risk at tsunami's following this earthquake.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the South Pacific Ocean, right off the coast of Peru (1 mi offshore), 98 kilometer south-east of Minas de Marcona in Ica. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 28 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Jun 28, 2024 00:36 (Lima Time) - Jun 28, 2024 05:36 Universal Time.
Location:	98 km SE of Minas de Marcona, Ica, Peru. Coordinates 15°48'38"S 74°26'41"W.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 7.2 Detected by 25 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.041 .
Depth:	28 km (17 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	VIII Severe On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Potential tsunami risk The USGS has indicated there is a potential risk at tsunami's following this earthquake. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Potential tsunami risk

There is a potential tsunami risk in the aftermath of this earthquake, immediately evacuate to higher grounds away from coastal areas and monitor advice from local authorities. The US Geographic Survey organization has indicated a potential risk for tsunami's following this earthquake.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Significant impact predicted

Based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level YELLOW (significant). They expect an 49% likelyhood of between 1 and 10 fatalities, and a 97% chance that the number of fatalities falls no higher than 100.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level YELLOW (significant). They expect an 39% likelyhood of between 1 and 10 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 99% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls no higher than 1,000 million USD.

Roughly 2.5 million people exposed to shaking

This earthquake may have been felt by around 2.5 million people. That is the expected population size of the area exposed to a level of shaking of II or higher on the Modified Mercalli scale according to the USGS.

The highest earthquake impact level for this earthquake is VIII, which corresponds with severe shaking and likely moderate to heavy damage. Roughly 90 people are expected to be exposed to this level. The majority of people (roughly 1.9 million) live in an area exposed to level IV, where light shaking and likely no damage is expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Peru .

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Peru . Located 98 kilometer (61 mi) south-east of the epicenter of this earthquake, Minas de Marcona (Ica, Peru) is the nearest significant population center. The intensity of shaking and damage in Minas de Marcona is estimated to be around level VII on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (very strong shaking, likely moderate damage).

Multiple major population centers exist within 300km of the earthquake that struck today. Lima is located 503 km to the northwest (intensity unknown, possibly low). La Paz is located 677 km to the east (intensity unknown, possibly low). Arequipa is located 318 km to the east (intensity unknown, possibly low).

A complete list of nearby places is included below. Estimated intensity data (MMI) sourced from a shake-map published by the US Geographic Survey is shown where available (cities without data probably experienced little impact).

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The graph below overlays a map of the region around the epicenter with earthquake intensity data provided by the US Geographic Survey. The highest intensity level detected for this earthquake is VIII.

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 119 people in 2 countries

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 119 people have reported shaking in 20 places in 2 countries (Chile, Peru).We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Lima, Lima Provincias, Peru: 41 people.
• San Luis, Lima Provincias, Peru: 33 people.
• Arequipa, Arequipa, Peru: 7 people.
• Acarí, Arequipa, Peru: 6 people.
• Santa María, Lima Provincias, Peru: 4 people.
• Ica, Ica, Peru: 4 people.
• Subtanjalla, Ica, Peru: 3 people.
• Pisco, Ica, Peru: 3 people.
• Iquique, Tarapacá, Chile: 3 people.
• Cusco, Cusco, Peru: 3 people.

14 Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 14 smaller aftershocks occurred. Just 1 day after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-6.1 was detected 38 km (23 mi) south-southwest of this earthquake.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

More earthquakes coming?

Aftershocks are usually at least 1 order of magnitude less strong than main shocks. The more time passes, the smaller the chance and likely strength of any potential aftershocks.

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

This is an unusually powerful earthquake

No earthquake of this strength has struck this region for a long time. Our data goes back 10 years, and no earthquakes measuring a magnitude of 7.2 or higher have been detected within 300 km (186 mi) of this epicenter.

Sources

Last updated 01/07/24 03:38 (). This article contains currently available information about the earthquake and is automatically composed. We continue to update this article up to a few days after the earthquake occurred.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000n8tq
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20240628_0000056
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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