Significant earthquakes of 2005

January 24, 2005 Earthquake: Puerto Lopez, Salango, Near West Coast, Ecuador

January 24, 2005 · M6.1

A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck Puerto Lopez, Salango, Near West Coast, Ecuador on January 24, 2005 at 23:23:26 UTC, 17 km below the surface.

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
January 24, 2005
Time
23:23:26 UTC
Place
Puerto Lopez, Salango, Near West Coast, Ecuador
Magnitude
6.1 (Mw)
Focal depth
17 km (11 mi)
Tsunami
None recorded
Epicenter
1.364° S, 80.785° W
Country
Ecuador

The toll

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.

Some houses collapsed at Puerto Lopez. Some houses damaged and landslides occurred at Salango. Felt at Bahia de Caraquez, Guayaquil, Manta, Portoviejo, Puerto Cayo, Quito and Salinas. Felt lightly at Esmeraldas.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

More

Significant earthquakes of 2005The 2000sEvery quake the USGS located in 2005Recent 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 5840.