Significant earthquakes of 1971

October 15, 1971 Earthquake: Apurimac, Peru

October 15, 1971 · M5.7 · 5 deaths

A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck Apurimac, Peru on October 15, 1971 at 10:33:46 UTC, 54 km below the surface. It killed 5 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
October 15, 1971
Time
10:33:46 UTC
Place
Apurimac, Peru
Magnitude
5.7 (mb)
Focal depth
54 km (34 mi)
Intensity
9 on the Modified Mercalli scale
Tsunami
None recorded
Epicenter
14.100° S, 73.300° W
Country
Peru

The toll

Deaths
5
Damage
Severe (about $5 to $25 million)

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.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

More

Significant earthquakes of 1971The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1971Recent 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 4584.