Cuba earthquakes

M4.9 earthquake 30 km SSW of El Cobre, Cuba

A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck 30 km SSW of El Cobre, Cuba on Sun, Jan 17, 2016, 3:17 AM GMT-5 (08:17 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.2 39 km SSW of El Cobre, Cuba. This one was a foreshock.

Santiago de Cuba forecast More in Cuba

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: Sun, Jan 17, 2016, 3:17 AM GMT-5
UTC: 2016-01-17 08:17:34 UTC
Depth: 10.0 km (6.2 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 19.813° N, 76.089° W
Region: Cuba
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 II, 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: 4.9 Mwr
Nodal plane 1: Strike 340°, dip 34°, rake 63°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 191°, dip 60°, rake 106°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 4.9 km horizontally, 1.6 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty: ±0.06
Depth from: Operator assigned
Station coverage gap: 27°
Stations used: 155

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.9 and up: 9 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

Earthquakes today Cuba earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us10004f5e (also filed as gcmt20160117081734). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 6:55 PM UTC.