Chile earthquakes

M4.9 earthquake 79 km WNW of Illapel, Chile

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 79 km WNW of Illapel, Chile on Sat, Sep 19, 2015, 3:13 PM GMT-3 (18:13 UTC), 18 km (11 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M6.3 26 km SSW of Ovalle, Chile. This one was a foreshock.

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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: 4.9 (mwr), light
Local time: Sat, Sep 19, 2015, 3:13 PM GMT-3
UTC: 2015-09-19 18:13:14 UTC
Depth: 17.6 km (10.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 31.317° S, 71.918° W
Region: Chile
Tsunami flag: No
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

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: 4.7 Mwr
Nodal plane 1: Strike 161°, dip 61°, rake 67°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 22°, dip 36°, rake 125°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 5.6 km horizontally, 3.5 km in depth
Depth from: From location
Station coverage gap: 77°
Stations used: 136

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.9 and up: 200 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 200.

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us20003lxn (also filed as gcmt20150919181314, iscgem607776566). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 11:24 PM UTC.