Chile earthquakes

M5.0 earthquake 74 km W of Illapel, Chile

A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck 74 km W of Illapel, Chile on Wed, Sep 23, 2015, 8:32 AM GMT-3 (11:32 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.4 50 km W of Illapel, 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: 5.0 (mww), moderate
Local time: Wed, Sep 23, 2015, 8:32 AM GMT-3
UTC: 2015-09-23 11:32:40 UTC
Depth: 10.0 km (6.2 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 31.619° S, 71.951° W
Region: Chile
Felt reports: 3
Tsunami flag: No
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

Did you feel it?

3 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was III, weak shaking.

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: 5.0 Mww
Nodal plane 1: Strike 179°, dip 56°, rake 94°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 352°, dip 34°, rake 84°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 6.0 km horizontally, 1.8 km in depth
Depth from: Operator assigned
Station coverage gap: 132°
Stations used: 127

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.0 and up: 148 in the 60 days after this one and 51 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 148.

Before

Earthquakes today Chile earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us20003nam (also filed as gcmt20150923113240, iscgem607797513). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 3:51 PM UTC.