May 11, 1962 Earthquake: Southern Mexico
A magnitude 7 earthquake struck Southern Mexico on May 11, 1962 at 14:11:54 UTC, 40 km below the surface. It killed 4 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
- May 11, 1962
- Time
- 14:11:54 UTC
- Place
- Southern Mexico
- Magnitude
- 7 (Ms)
- Focal depth
- 40 km (25 mi)
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 17.200° N, 99.600° W
- Country
- Mexico
The toll
- Deaths
- 4
- Injuries
- Many (about 101 to 1,000)
- 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.
On May 11, 1962, at 8:12 [local time] there was a magnitude 7.2 earthquake with an intensity of 8 degrees at Acapulco [17.2 N, 99.7 W, depth 40 km] where there was destruction, four dead and many injured. At Mexico City, the earthquake had an intensity of up to 7 degrees. A tsunami with a height of 75 cm (2.8 feet) was registered at Acapulco
(reference #415)
Reference #45 lists May 11, 1962, 14:11:54.1 UTC, 17 N, 99.6 W, depth 40 km, magnitude 7, four dead, many injured, extensive property damage in south-central Mexico. Seismic sea wave with maximum amplitude about 2.8 ft. reported at Acapulco.
Reference #369 lists magnitude 7.0 earthquake located near Acapulco (17.25 N, 99.6 W), where it left four dead, many injured and material damages. It generated a small tsunami.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- September 19, 2017, Mexico City, Morelos, Puebla
- October 24, 1980, S, Huajapan DE Leon, Oaxaca, Mexico
- July 6, 1964, Guerrero, Mexico
- July 28, 1957, Acapulco,mexico City
- October 3, 1864, Puebla,veracruz,acultzingo,acatzingo, 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
- February 22, 1943, Paricutin Volcano Forms, Guerrero, Mexico
- March 14, 1979, Guerrero, Mexico
- December 23, 1937, Ometepec, Guerrero, Mexico
- May 19, 1962, Southern Mexico
- September 8, 2021, Guerrero, Mexico
More
Significant earthquakes of 1962The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1962Recent 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 4265.