Significant M5.8 Earthquake hit near Sonsonate in El Salvador on Thursday Morning.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on January 9th, 2025. Last updated January 14th, 2025.

A significant M5.8 earthquake struck under land 14 kilometer from Sonsonate in El Salvador in the morning of Thursday January 9th, 2025. Shaking may have been felt by a total of 21 million people. Other countries near the epicenter include Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Mexico.

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Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in El Salvador, 14 kilometer (9 mi) south of Sonsonate. The center of this earthquake had an intermediate depth of 95 km.

Date and Time:	Jan 9, 2025 10:31AM (El Salvador Time) - Jan 9, 2025 16:31 Universal Time.
Location:	14 km south of Sonsonate, El Salvador. Coordinates 13°35'30"N 89°44'39"W.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.8 Detected by 85 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.034 .
Depth:	95 km (59 mi) An intermediate depth.
Max. Intensity:	V Moderate On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Tsunami very unlikely While this was a shallow earthquake in a coastal area, it appears to have occurred under land (7 km from the sea) with a magnitude that is usually not strong enough to 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 21 million people exposed to shaking

This earthquake may have been felt by around 21 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.

An estimated 4,890,000 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 16 million). In their region, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected.

People in 4 countries have been exposed to shaking. Roughly 13 million people were exposed to shaking in Guatemala , with level IV (light shaking, likely no damage) as the highest recorded. Roughly 6.5 million people were exposed to shaking in El Salvador . In Honduras , around 2.1 million people. Shaking was experienced by inhabitants of Nicaragua too.

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake struck within proximity of multiple countries. El Salvador , Guatemala , Honduras , Nicaragua and Mexico are all within 300km distance of its epicenter.

Acajutla in Sonsonate, El Salvador is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 9 kilometer (6 mi) east of Acajutla. The intensity of shaking and damage in Acajutla is estimated to be around level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (light shaking, likely no damage).

Multiple major population centers exist within 300km of the earthquake that struck today. San Salvador is located 61 km to the east and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Guatemala City is located 143 km to the northwest and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Soyapango is located 67 km to the east-northeast and experienced an intensity of IV (light shaking, likely no damage).

The table below provides an overview of all places in proximity of today's earthquake. Where available, the estimated intensity on the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale in each place is included. Places where this information is omitted likely 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 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 51 people in 3 countries

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 51 people have reported shaking in 26 places in 3 countries (El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua).We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Antiguo Cuscatlán, La Libertad, El Salvador: 9 people.
• Santa Catarina Pinula, Guatemala, Guatemala: 6 people.
• Mejicanos, San Salvador, El Salvador: 4 people.
• San Salvador, San Salvador, El Salvador: 4 people.
• Guatemala, Guatemala, Guatemala: 4 people.
• Acajutla, Sonsonate, El Salvador: 2 people.
• Santa Lucía Milpas Altas, Sacatepéquez, Guatemala: 2 people.
• Mixco, Guatemala, Guatemala: 2 people.
• San Andrés Itzapa, Chimaltenango, Guatemala: 1 person.
• Panajachel, Sololá, Guatemala: 1 person.

5 Aftershocks detected

Since this main shock, 5 smaller aftershocks were detected. At a distance of 85 km (53 mi) south-east of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 19 hrs later. It measured a magnitude of 4.1

This main shock was prefaced by 5 smaller foreshocks. Roughly 3 days before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-4.2 was detected nearby 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.

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.

Earthquakes like this happen often in the region

Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since January 5th, 2025, when a 6.2 magnitude earthquake hit 86 km (54 mi) further south-east. An even stronger magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck on June 14th, 2017.

In total, 27 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.8 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 5 months.

Tsunami very unlikely

While MAG-6.5+ earthquakes may cause tsunami's, it appears that the epicenter of this earthquake hit under land. In addition, the reported depth is deeper than 100km, making the risk of a tsunami even less likely. However always stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Sources

Last updated 14/01/25 16:48 (). 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.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000pixh
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20250109_0000201
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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