Chile earthquakes

M7.7 earthquake 53 km SW of Iquique, Chile

A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck 53 km SW of Iquique, Chile on Wed, Apr 2, 2014, 11:43 PM GMT-3 (02:43 UTC), 22 km (14 mi) below the surface.

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Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 7.7 (mww), major
Local time: Wed, Apr 2, 2014, 11:43 PM GMT-3
UTC: 2014-04-03 02:43:13 UTC
Depth: 22.4 km (13.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 20.571° S, 70.493° W
Region: Chile
Felt reports: 177
Strongest shaking: IX, violent shaking
PAGER alert: Yellow
Tsunami flag: Yes: a large quake in an oceanic region
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

Tsunami

The USGS flags a quake this large in an oceanic region. The flag does not mean a tsunami happened; the tsunami warning centers decide that, and their messages are below when they issued any.

Current tsunami warnings: tsunami.gov. Warnings in force in the US also appear on our alerts pages.

Shaking

The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.

Strongest estimated: IX, violent shaking
Peak ground acceleration: 55.9% of gravity
Peak ground velocity: 4.2 cm/s
Map: Automatic

USGS ShakeMap: estimated shaking intensity around the epicenter — Estimated shaking intensity. Map: USGS ShakeMap.

Did you feel it?

177 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was VIII, severe shaking.

Estimated impact

The USGS PAGER system estimates deaths and economic losses from the shaking and the population and buildings exposed to it.

Alert level: Yellow: some damage and deaths possible, a local or regional response

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: 7.7 Mww
Nodal plane 1: Strike 166°, dip 75°, rake 87°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 356°, dip 15°, rake 100°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Depth from: FROM_LOCATION
Station coverage gap: 44°
Stations used: 145

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.5 and up: 200 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 200.

Earthquakes today Chile earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usc000p27i (also filed as pt14093001, at00n3fow6, iscgem604399091, atlas20140403024313). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 9:34 PM UTC.