M6.8 earthquake 24 km SW of Roncesvalles, Colombia
A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck 24 km SW of Roncesvalles, Colombia on Tue, Sep 2, 1997, 7:13 AM GMT-5 (12:13 UTC), 199 km (123 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 6.8 (Mwb, body-wave moment), strong
- Magnitude from
- USGS National Earthquake Information Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 1997-09-02 12:13:22 UTC
- Depth
- 198.7 km (123.5 mi), intermediate-depth
- Epicenter
- 3.849° N, 75.749° W
- Region
- Colombia
- Strongest shaking
- V, moderate shaking
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Magnitude estimates
Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.
| Mag. | Scale | Computed by | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.8 | Mwb, body-wave moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Preferred · Reviewed |
| 6.75 | Mw, moment | ISC-GEM global catalog | Final · ±0.1 |
| 6.7 | Mwc, centroid moment | Global CMT project | Preliminary |
| 6.45 | Me, energy | Choy, USGS energy magnitude | Reviewed |
| 6.8 | Mww, W-phase moment | Duputel, W-phase inversion | Preliminary |
What happened
The USGS’s account of the effects of this earthquake.
Felt at Armenia, Bogota, Cali, Ibague, Manizales, Medellin, Pereira and many other parts of central and western Colombia. Also felt (II) at Panama City and Penonome, Panama.
From the USGS event page for usp000871m. U.S. Geological Survey text and figures are in the public domain.
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- V, moderate shaking
- Peak ground acceleration
- 4.5% of gravity
- Peak ground velocity
- 1.0 cm/s
- Map
- Automatic
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
Fault motion and ground failure
How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.
- Faulting
- Reverse (thrust)
- Moment magnitude
- 6.8 Mww
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 109°, dip 46°, rake 109°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 261°, dip 46°, rake 70°
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 3.8 and up: 0 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.
None recorded.
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Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000871m (also filed as choy19970902121322, gcmtc090297b, gcmt19970902121322, duputel090297b, atlas19970902121324, iscgem1039850). Read Mon, Oct 5, 2026, 9:31 AM UTC.