July 28, 1957 Earthquake: Acapulco,mexico City
A magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck Acapulco,mexico City on July 28, 1957 at 08:40:01 UTC, 25 km below the surface. It killed 65 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
- July 28, 1957
- Time
- 08:40:01 UTC
- Place
- Acapulco,mexico City
- Magnitude
- 7.9 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 25 km (16 mi)
- Intensity
- 7 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 16.500° N, 99.100° W
- Country
- Mexico
The toll
- Deaths
- 65
- Injuries
- Many (about 101 to 1,000)
- Damage
- $25 million
- Houses destroyed
- Many (101 to 1,000)
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.
1957, July 28, 1957, 2:40 [local time]. There was a destructive magnitude 7.5 earthquake with source near San Marcos [16o 21' N, 99o 13' W, depth 25 km]. In Mexico City, at a distance of 350 km from the source of the earthquake there were 54 dead; only buildings on loose water-saturated soils were destroyed. Injuries, fatalities and buildings damaged were: San Marcos (11 injured, 95% of buildings damaged); Chilpansingo (7 killed, 90% of buildings damaged); Chilapa (7 injured, 70% of buildings damaged); Huamustitlan (3 injured, 60% of buildings damaged); Ayutla (4 killed, 1 injured); San Luis Acatlan (60% of buildings damaged); Uitzuco (50% of buildings damaged); Tlapa (50% of buildings damaged). The earthquake was felt on an area of 350,000 sq km. The earthquake was followed by a tsunami. (reference #415)
Reference #45 lists July 28, 1957, 08:40:01 UTC, 16.5 N, 99 W, magnitude 7.9, 68 killed, many injured, and extensive property damage in Acapulco and Mexico City. Seismic sea wave with maximum amplitude about 8.5 feet reported at Acapulco, at Salina Cruz it was about one foot.
1957, July 28, 08:40 UTC. 16.5 N, 99.1 W, magnitude 7.9, 54 killed in Mexico City, 7 in Chilpancingo and 4 in Ayutla. (reference #369)
1957, July 28. 16.5 N, 99 W, magnitude 7.9. (reference #79)
1957, July 28. 160 deaths, $25 million damage. (reference #1051)
1957, July 28. Intensity VII. (reference #1228)
28 dead (reference #13997)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- October 3, 1864, Puebla,veracruz,acultzingo,acatzingo, Mexico
- August 2, 1968, Oaxaca, Guerrero, Mexico
- February 16, 2018, Oaxaca, Mexico
- March 28, 1787, San Marcos, Oaxaca, Mexico
- June 7, 1982, Guererro, Orziba, Oaxaca, Guadalupe, Mexico
- April 15, 1907, Guerrero, Mexico
- July 19, 1882, Puebla,huahuapan,huamuxtitlan,xalpatlahuac, Mexico
- December 23, 1937, Ometepec, Guerrero, Mexico
- May 11, 1962, Southern Mexico
- May 5, 1854, Veracruz,oaxaca, Mexico
- April 25, 1989, Mexico City, Acapulco
- September 14, 1995, Guerrero, Oaxaca, Puebla, Mexico City
- May 19, 1962, Southern Mexico
- September 8, 2021, Guerrero, Mexico
- January 2, 2026, Guerrero, Mexico
More
Significant earthquakes of 1957The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1957Recent 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 4139.