M6.1 earthquake 135 km S of Burica, Panama
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck 135 km S of Burica, Panama on Sat, Jul 17, 2021, 3:56 PM EST (20:56 UTC), 4 km (3 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M6.7 71 km S of Burica, Panama. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 6.1 (mww), strong
- Local time
- UTC
- 2021-07-17 20:56:10 UTC
- Depth
- 4.1 km (2.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 6.826° N, 82.677° W
- Region
- Panama
- Felt reports
- 101
- Strongest shaking
- IV, light shaking
- PAGER alert
- Green
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- IV, light shaking
- Peak ground acceleration
- 1.8% of gravity
- Peak ground velocity
- 0.9 cm/s
- Map
- Automatic
Did you feel it?
101 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was VI, strong 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
- Green: little or no damage or loss of life expected
| Range | Chance |
|---|---|
| Under 1 | 65% |
| 1 to 10 | 30% |
| 10 to 100 | 4% |
| 100 to 1,000 | Under 1% |
| 1,000 to 10,000 | Under 1% |
| 10,000 to 100,000 | Under 1% |
| 100,000 to 10,000,000 | Under 1% |
| Range, million USD | Chance |
|---|---|
| Under 1 | 65% |
| 1 to 10 | 30% |
| 10 to 100 | 4% |
| 100 to 1,000 | Under 1% |
| 1,000 to 10,000 | Under 1% |
| 10,000 to 100,000 | Under 1% |
| 100,000 to 10,000,000 | Under 1% |
Fault motion and ground failure
How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.
- Faulting
- Strike-slip
- Moment magnitude
- 6.1 Mww
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 267°, dip 68°, rake 4°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 175°, dip 87°, rake 158°
- Landslide alert
- Green
- Liquefaction alert
- Green
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Location uncertainty
- About 6.5 km horizontally, 2.8 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.04
- Depth from
- From location
- Station coverage gap
- 55°
- Stations used
- 313
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 3.1 and up: 12 in the 60 days after this one and 3 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.296 km SSE of Burica, Panama · 1897 days ago · 10 km deep · 39 km away
- 4.6102 km S of Burica, Panama · 1895 days ago · 10 km deep · 32 km away · felt by 2
- 4.4104 km S of Burica, Panama · 1895 days ago · 10 km deep · 32 km away
- 6.771 km S of Burica, Panama · 1893 days ago · 10 km deep · 64 km away · felt by 235 · tsunami flag
- 4.970 km S of Burica, Panama · 1893 days ago · 10 km deep · 65 km away · felt by 2
- 4.691 km S of Burica, Panama · 1893 days ago · 10 km deep · 53 km away · felt by 4
- 5.155 km S of Burica, Panama · 1892 days ago · 10 km deep · 80 km away · felt by 4
- 4.667 km SSE of Burica, Panama · 1889 days ago · 10 km deep · 69 km away · felt by 1
- 4.2111 km SSE of Burica, Panama · 1884 days ago · 10 km deep · 24 km away
- 4.557 km SSE of Burica, Panama · 1868 days ago · 10 km deep · 79 km away
- 4.585 km SSE of Burica, Panama · 1865 days ago · 10 km deep · 52 km away
- 4.3105 km SSE of Burica, Panama · 1846 days ago · 11 km deep · 50 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayPanama earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us7000emzy (also filed as usauto7000emzy, pt21198000, iscgem625300213). Read Sun, Sep 27, 2026, 12:16 AM UTC.