May 19, 1962 Earthquake: Southern Mexico

Name: May 19, 1962 Earthquake: Southern Mexico
Start: 1962-05-19
Location: Southern Mexico

May 19, 1962 · M7.2 · 3 deaths

A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck Southern Mexico on May 19, 1962 at 14:58:15 UTC, 33 km below the surface. It killed 3 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 19, 1962
Time: 14:58:15 UTC
Place: Southern Mexico
Magnitude: 7.2 (Ms)
Focal depth: 33 km (21 mi)
Tsunami: Yes: the tsunami it caused
Epicenter: 17.200° N, 99.500° W
Country: Mexico
Region: North America and Hawaii
USGS record: The USGS’s page for this earthquake

The toll

Deaths: 3
Injuries: 16
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 19, 1962 at 14:58:15.0 UTC, a magnitude 7-7.25 earthquake near the coast of Mexico (17.2 N, 99.5 W, depth 33 km) caused 3 fatalities, 16 injuries and extensive property damage in south-central Mexico. (reference #45)

Reference #369 lists May 19, 1962 17.1 N, 99.6 W, magnitude 7.2.

Sources NCEI cites

The publications NCEI lists for this record. The numbers match the “reference #” notes in its account above.

#45 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. vol.s 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. [on shelf]
#369 Sanchez Devora, Antonio J., and Salvador F. Farreras Sanz (1993). Catalog of tsunamis on the western coast of Mexico. Report SE-50, World Data Center A for Solid Earth Geophysics, NOAA, National Geophysical Data Center, Boulder, Colorado, USA, 79 p.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1962 The 1900s Every quake the USGS located in 1962 Recent earthquakes near here This 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 2026-10-01. NCEI earthquake 4266. The written accounts and the magnitude estimates are from the USGS earthquake catalog, event iscgem17291870, matched to this record by time, place and magnitude.