June 26, 1870 Earthquake: El Tocuyo, Venezuela
An earthquake struck El Tocuyo, Venezuela on June 26, 1870 at 15:00 UTC. It killed 3 people.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- June 26, 1870
- Time
- 15:00 UTC
- Place
- El Tocuyo, Venezuela
- Intensity
- 7 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 9.500° N, 69.500° W
- Country
- Venezuela
The toll
- Deaths
- 3
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
- Houses destroyed
- 30
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
Some damage in Tocuyo, where some 22 tremors were felt. One of them was disastrous, causing the collapse of 30 homes, two or three deaths, and many injuries. Felt in Quibor (Centeno, 1940). Fiedler (1961) estimates that the epicenter of this event was probably the same as that of 1950, in the Bocono fault system. (reference #124)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- June 24, 2026, Northern Venezuela
- August 3, 1950, El Tocuyo, Venezuela
- April 5, 1975, Venezuela
- July 18, 1986, Churuguara, Falcon, Lara, Venezuela
- November 17, 1888, Guanare, Venezuela
- July 14, 1899, Barquisimeto, Venezuela
- August 17, 1991, Barquisimeto, Venezuela
- November 4, 1894, Carache, Venezuela
- December 1775, Trujillo, Venezuela
- September 29, 1886, Trujillo, Venezuela
- November 27, 2009, Siquisique, Venezuela
- September 19, 1966, Venezuela
- August 12, 1834, Merida, Venezuela
More
Significant earthquakes of 1870The 1800sRecent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 2171.