October 11, 1939 Earthquake: Chuquibamba, Peru

October 11, 1939, 14:51 UTC, 15.305 S, 72.199 W, depth 120 km, intensity VII. (reference #1208)

October 11, 1939, 14:51 UTC, 15.305 S, 72.199 W, depth 33 km, 8.56 MS. (reference #1221)

October 11, 1939, at 09:51 hours. The Seismological Observatory at Lima recorded a seismic movement coming from about 650 km SE of Lima. Reports coming from the south said that the village of Chuquibamba (3050 m a.s.l.) situated on an alluvial plain in the gorge of the Majes River, had been much affected; the church, jail, and town hall suffered grave damage and many houses were out of plumb. In the hamlet of Chiquibambilla (3343 m a.s.l.), in the vicinity of the Vilcabamba River, tributary of the Apurimac, many dwellings were destroyed, likewise at Caraveli, on the Pacific slope. The shock also caused damage to the buildings of the cities of Arequipa and Moquegua. It was felt with great intensity in the villages of Puquio, Quicacha, Palpa, and in the harbors of Chala and Mollendo. (reference #1111)

The magnitude of this earthquake is questionable since the earthquake is not listed in the following references:

Duda, Seweryn J., 1965, Secular seismic energy release in the circum-Pacific belt. Tectonophysics, vol. 2, no. 5, p. 409-452. (reference #88)

Gutenberg, B., and C.F. Richter, 1965, Seismicity of the earth and associated phenomena. Princeton University Press, 1954 (second edition); Hafner Publishing Company, New York and London (facsimile edition), 310 p. (reference #130)

U.S. Department of the Interior, Geological Survey and U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 1928-1986, United States Earthquakes, Annual publication, published 1928-1986. Volumes for 1928-1965 issued by the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey; volumes for 1966-1969 issued by the National Earthquake Information Center; volume for 1970 issued by the National Geophysical Data Center; volumes for 1971-1972 issued by the National Geophysical And Solar-Terrestrial Data Center; volumes for 1973-1980 published jointly by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Geological Survey; volumes for 1981-1986 published by the U.S. Geological Survey. (reference #45)

Seismological Notes, 1940, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, Vol. 30, No. 1, p. 87-89. (reference #8235)