November 5, 1909 Earthquake: Oruro, Bolivia
An earthquake struck Oruro, Bolivia on November 5, 1909.
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
- November 5, 1909
- Place
- Oruro, Bolivia
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 18.000° S, 67.000° W
- Country
- Bolivia
The toll
- Deaths
- Some (about 51 to 100)
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
- Houses destroyed
- Some (about 51 to 100)
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.
Reference #14060:
La Mañana, from Sucre, on 6 November, reports: "countless victims have been caused by an earthquake on the 5th in the city of Oruro; at 11 o'clock in the morning in the North station, a seismic movement occurred which caused several houses, people and objects that were nearby to disappear. The terrifying sound produced a real madness of terror in the neighbourhood, groups of men, women and children were seen everywhere running in panic".
‘In the first instance, 30 bodies were pulled out of the rubble…"
[note: translation from original Spanish supported by AI tools]
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
More
Significant earthquakes of 1909The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1909Recent 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 10903.