August 10, 1938 Earthquake: Alangasi,sangolqui,tingo-Pichincha, Ecuador
A magnitude 7 earthquake struck Alangasi,sangolqui,tingo-Pichincha, Ecuador on August 10, 1938 at 02:02:00 UTC, 10 km below the surface.
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
- August 10, 1938
- Time
- 02:02:00 UTC
- Place
- Alangasi,sangolqui,tingo-Pichincha, Ecuador
- Magnitude
- 7
- Focal depth
- 10 km (6 mi)
- Intensity
- 10 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 0.300° S, 78.400° W
- Country
- Ecuador
The toll
- Damage
- Extreme (about $25 million or more)
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 #1221 lists two events on 10 Aug 1938 at 02:01:0 (0.3 S 78.4 W) and 02:02:06 (0.264 S 78.418 W) with catastrophic damages.
Reference #1127 lists event 09 Aug 1938 at 21:01:00 local. Towns destroyed include Tingo and Alangasi.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- August 16, 1868, San Pablo, Guayaquil,ibarra, Colombia, Ecuador
- February 4, 1797, Riobamba, Quito, Cuzco, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador
- June 20, 1698, Tungurahua,cotopaxi,chimborazo, Ecuador
- August 5, 1949, Tungurahua, Ecuador
- March 6, 1987, Napo Province, Quito, Tulcan, Ecuador
- February 1640, Ecuador
- February 22, 1757, Cotopaxi,tungurahua, Latacunga, Ecuador
- January 31, 1906, Off Coast, Ecuador
- April 16, 2016, Manabi, Esmeraldas, Near West Coast, Ecuador
- December 14, 1923, Ipiales, Colombia
- January 9, 1936, Colombia
- March 3, 1924, Ecuador
- March 28, 1996, Cotopaxi, Pastaza, Tungurahua, Ambato, Ecuador
- July 30, 1960, Ecuador
- April 9, 1976, Esmeraldos, Ecuador
More
Significant earthquakes of 1938The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1938Recent 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 3624.