Shallow M5.9 Earthquake struck on Wednesday Afternoon in the North Pacific Ocean 295km from Puerto Vallarta (Mexico).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on October 16th, 2024. Last updated December 15th, 2024.

In the North Pacific Ocean 295 kilometer from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, a shallow and significant Magnitude 5.9 earthquake occurred in the afternoon of Wednesday October 16th, 2024. Shaking may have been felt by a total of 60 thousand people.

Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the North Pacific Ocean, 227 kilometers (141 mi) off the coast of Mexico, 295 kilometer southwest of Puerto Vallarta in Jalisco. 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:	Oct 16, 2024 14:40 (Mexico City Time) - Oct 16, 2024 19:40 Universal Time.
Location:	295 km SW of Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico. Coordinates 18°31'10"N 106°57'2"W.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.9 Detected by 36 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.052 .
Depth:	10 km (6 mi) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	IV Light 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 60 thousand people exposed to shaking

The USGS has published a report estimating the number of people exposed to this earthquake. Acoording to their analysis, roughly 60 thousand have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

An estimated 70 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 60 thousand). In their region, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Mexico .

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
0	II	Very weak	None
55,090	III	Weak	Probably none
70	IV	Light	Likely none
0	V	Moderate	Very light
0	VI	Strong	Light
0	VII	Very Strong	Moderate
0	VIII	Severe	Moderate to heavy
0	IX	Violent	Heavy
0	X	Extreme	Very heavy

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Mexico . The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Cihuatlán in Jalisco, Mexico. Cihuatlán is located 263 kilometer (163 mi) west-southwest of the epicenter.

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Tepic is located 396 km to the north-northeast. Puerto Vallarta is located 295 km to the north-east. Manzanillo is located 282 km to the east-northeast.

An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below.

Overview of nearby places

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place
263 km (163 mi) ENE from epicenter	Cihuatlán Jalisco, Mexico.
282 km (175 mi) ENE from epicenter	Manzanillo Colima, Mexico.
295 km (183 mi) NE from epicenter	Puerto Vallarta Jalisco, Mexico.
302 km (188 mi) NE from epicenter	Mezcales Nayarit, Mexico.
305 km (190 mi) ENE from epicenter	Autlán de Navarro Jalisco, Mexico.
305 km (190 mi) NE from epicenter	Ixtapa Jalisco, Mexico.
308 km (191 mi) NE from epicenter	San José del Valle Jalisco, Mexico.
318 km (198 mi) E from epicenter	Ciudad de Armería Colima, Mexico.
321 km (199 mi) ENE from epicenter	El Grullo Jalisco, Mexico.
327 km (203 mi) E from epicenter	Tecomán Colima, Mexico.
327 km (203 mi) NE from epicenter	El Salto Jalisco, Mexico.
348 km (216 mi) ENE from epicenter	Ciudad de Villa de Álvarez Colima, Mexico.
349 km (217 mi) ENE from epicenter	Colima Colima, Mexico.
371 km (231 mi) NE from epicenter	Compostela Nayarit, Mexico.
379 km (235 mi) NE from epicenter	Ameca Jalisco, Mexico.
383 km (238 mi) ENE from epicenter	Sayula Jalisco, Mexico.
389 km (242 mi) NE from epicenter	Ixtlán del Río Nayarit, Mexico.
390 km (242 mi) ENE from epicenter	Ciudad Guzmán Jalisco, Mexico.
390 km (242 mi) NNE from epicenter	Xalisco Nayarit, Mexico.
391 km (243 mi) ENE from epicenter	Zapotiltic Jalisco, Mexico.
393 km (244 mi) ENE from epicenter	Tuxpan Jalisco, Mexico.
395 km (245 mi) NE from epicenter	Ahualulco de Mercado Jalisco, Mexico.
396 km (246 mi) NNE from epicenter	Tepic Nayarit, Mexico.

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

Earthquake Intensity Map based on Shakemap Data provided by USGS.

Shaking reported by 2 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 2 people have reported shaking in 2 places 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:

Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico: 1 person.
Tlalnepantla, México, Mexico: 1 person.

3 Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 3 smaller aftershocks occurred. At a distance of 32 km (20 mi) east of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 20 mins later. It measured a magnitude of 3.8

In the days before this main shock, 2 smaller foreshocks were detected. A 5.2 magnitude earthquake hit 20 hrs earlier nearby.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

Detected MAG2.5+ earthquakes within within 100km (62 mi), that occurred in the three days before and after the main shock.
Classification	Magnitude	When	Where
Foreshock	M 5.2	20 hrs earlier Oct 15, 2024 18:49 (Mexico City Time)	31 km (19 mi) SE from Main Shock.
Foreshock	M 5.2	20 hrs earlier Oct 15, 2024 18:49 (Mexico City Time)	39 km (24 mi) ENE from Main Shock.
Main Shock This Earthquake	M 5.9	Oct 16, 2024 14:40 (Mexico City Time)	-
Aftershock	M 3.8	20 mins later Oct 16, 2024 15:01 (Mexico City Time)	32 km (20 mi) E from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 3.7	2 hrs later Oct 16, 2024 16:11 (Mexico City Time)	22 km (13 mi) NE from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 3.7	2 hrs later Oct 16, 2024 16:20 (Mexico City Time)	17 km (11 mi) NE from Main Shock.

More earthquakes coming?

Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.

It's always adviced to be cautious of the risk of a larger shock following any significant earthquake, however this risk is fairly small. There is a roughly 94 percent change that no larger main shock will follow in the days following this earthquake.

Read: How to Stay Safe during an Earthquake (cdc.gov).

This is the strongest earthquake in 3 years

Earthquakes of this strength occur quite regularly in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since December 22nd, 2021, when a 6 magnitude earthquake hit 37 km (23 mi) further north-northwest. An even stronger magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck on January 21st, 2016.

In total, 5 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.9 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

DISCLAIMER: We strongly suggest to closely monitor advice from local authorities with regards to tsunami risks. Our analysis is based on automatically collected data from external sources, and these might contain mistakes. In addition, earthquakes can cause landslides that may lead to a tsunami, or be a followed by another, potentially stonger, earthquake.

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

Factor	Under Sea?	MAG-6.5 or stronger?	Shallow depth?
Explanation	Almost all tsunami's are caused by earthquakes with their epicenter under sea or very near the sea. However stay cautious in coastal areas as earthquakes on land may cause landslides into sea, potentially still causing a local tsunami.	Under MAG 6.5: Very unlikely to cause a tsunami. MAG 6.5 to 7.5: Destructive tsunami's do occur, but are uncommon. Likely to observe small sea level changes. MAG 7.6+: Earthquakes with these magnitudes might produce destructive tsunami's.	Most destructive tsunami's are caused by shallow earthquakes with a depth between 0 and 100km under the surface of the earth. Deeper tsunami's are unlikely to displace to ocean floor.
This Earthquake	This earthquake appears to have struck under the sea.	Not this earthquake. This earthquake had a magnitude of 5.9. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 10 km (6 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 15/12/24 04:08 (). This article is automatically generated based on available data. We keep checking multiple sources for additional information. This article gets updated as new details on this earthquake become available.