This is a list of notable earthquakes that had epicentres in Spain, or significantly affected the country.
Contents
This is a list of notable earthquakes that had epicentres in Spain, or significantly affected the country.
Spain lies on the Eurasian plate just to the north of its boundary with the African plate. The southernmost part of Spain is the zone with the highest seismicity in the country. The African plate is obliquely converging with the Eurasian plate at about 5 mm/year. [1]
| Date | Region | Mag. | MMI | Deaths | Injuries | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-08-12 | Granada, Andalusia | 4.6 Mw | VII | Minor damage | [2] [3] | ||
| 2021-01-28 | Granada, Andalusia | 4.2 Mw | IV | Minor damage | [4] [5] | ||
| 2021-01-26 | Granada, Andalusia | 4.5, 4.2, 4.4 Mw | IV-V | Three earthquakes in a 30 minutes period. Minor damages in households. Many people spent the night out in the street. | [6] | ||
| 2021-01-23 | Granada, Andalusia | 4.2 Mw | IV | 1 | Minor damage/Part of an earthquake swarm | [7] [8] | |
| 2016-01-25 | Alboran Sea | 6.3 Mw | VI | 1 | 30+ | Moderate damage | [9] |
| 2011-05-11 | Lorca, Murcia | 5.1 Mw | VIII | 9 | 403 | Damage to a clocktower and old buildings | |
| 2010-11-04 | Granada, Andalusia | 6.3 Mw | III | 609 km depth | [10] | ||
| 2005-01-29 | Murcia | 4.4 Mw | VI | 565 houses damaged | [11] | ||
| 1999-02-02 | Murcia | 4.8 Mw | VII | 20 | Minor damage | [12] | |
| 1997-05-22 | Galicia | 5.4 Mw | VII | 1 | Minor damage | [13] | |
| 1993-12-23 | Andalusia | 5.3 Mw | VII | Minor damage | [14] | ||
| 1956-04-19 | Albolote, Granada | 5.0 Mw | VIII | 11 | [15] | ||
| 1954-03-29 | Granada, Andalusia | 7.8 Mw | V | Property damage at Granada, 640 km depth | [15] [16] | ||
| 1884-12-25 | Granada, Málaga, Almería | 6.7 Mw | IX | 1,200 | 3,000+ | Heavy damage | |
| 1829-03-21 | Torrevieja, Alicante | 6.6 Mw | IX | 389 | 377 | More than 2,000 buildings were destroyed | [15] |
| 1817-03-18 | La Rioja | XI | Heavy damage, felt in Madrid | [15] | |||
| 1806-10-27 | Pinos Puente, Granada | 5.3 Ms | VIII | 13 | |||
| 1804-08-25 | Almería | 6.4 Mw | VIII–IX | 1,000 | 100+ | Severe damage | |
| 1804-01-13 | Motril, Granada | 6.7 | VII–VIII | 2 | |||
| 1790-10-10 | Algeria | 6.0–6.5 | VIII–IX | 3,000 | Tsunami reported. Damaging in Spain. All fatalities reported in Algeria. | ||
| 1755-11-01 | Atlantic Ocean | 8.5–9.0 Mw | XI | 10,000–100,000 | Major tsunami, widespread damage in southwestern Spain | ||
| 1748-03-23 | Estubeny, Valencia | 6.2 | IX | 38 | [15] | ||
| 1680-10-09 | Granada, Andalusia | 6.8 | VII–IX | ||||
| 1658-12-31 | Almería | VIII–IX | |||||
| 1644-06-19 | Muro de Alcoy, Alicante | VIII | 38 | ||||
| 1550-04-19 | Almería | VI–X | |||||
| 1531-09-30 | Baza, Granada, Andalusia | VIII–IX | |||||
| 1522-09-22 | Almería | 6.8–7.0 Mw | X–XI | 2,500 | [15] | ||
| 1518-11-09 | Vera, Almería | IX | 165 | [15] | |||
| 1504-04-05 | Carmona, Sevilla | 6.8 | VIII–IX | 32 | [15] | ||
| 1494-01-26 | Málaga | VIII | [15] | ||||
| 1431-04-24 | Granada, Andalusia | 6.8 | VIII–IX | 1,000 | [15] [17] | ||
| 1428-02-02 | Girona, Catalonia | 6.7 | IX | 800 | [15] | ||
| 1373-03-02 | Aragon | VIII–IX | [15] | ||||
| 1356-08-24 | Cape St Vincent, Portugal | VIII | Damage in Seville | [15] | |||
| 1169 | Jaén Andalusia | VIII–IX | [15] | ||||
| 1170 | Andújar, Jaén | 6.0 | VIII–IX | ||||
| 1048 | Alicante, Valencia | VIII | [15] | ||||
| 1024-03-15 | South of Spain | VIII–X | [15] | ||||
| 974 | Córdoba, Andalusia | [15] | |||||
| 957 | Córdoba, Andalusia | [15] | |||||
| 944 | Córdoba, Andalusia | [15] | |||||
| 881-06-10 | Gulf of Cádiz, Andalusia | 7.2 | [15] | ||||
| 880 | Córdoba, Andalusia | 5.7 | VIII | [15] | |||
| Note: The inclusion criteria for adding events are based on WikiProject Earthquakes' notability guideline that was developed for stand alone articles. The principles described also apply to lists. In summary, only damaging, injurious, or deadly events should be recorded. | |||||||
The 2007 Peru earthquake, which measured 8.0 on the moment magnitude scale, hit the central coast of Peru on August 15 at 23:40:57 UTC and lasted two minutes. The epicenter was located 150 km (93 mi) south-southeast of Lima at a depth of 39 km (24 mi). At least 595 people died and over 2,290 people were injured.
The 2004 Al Hoceima earthquake occurred on 24 February at 02:27:47 local time near the coast of northern Morocco. The strike-slip earthquake measured 6.3 on the moment magnitude scale and had a maximum perceived intensity of IX (Violent) on the Mercalli intensity scale. Between 628 and 631 people were killed, 926 injured, and up to 15,000 people were rendered homeless in the Al Hoceima-Imzourene-Beni Abdallah area.
The 1969 Portugal earthquake struck western Portugal and Morocco on 28 February at 02:40 UTC. Originating west of the Strait of Gibraltar, the earthquake registered a magnitude of 7.8 and the maximum felt intensity was VII on the Mercalli intensity scale. In total, 13 people died and 80 sustained minor injuries. It is the largest earthquake to hit Portugal since the 1755 Lisbon earthquake.
The 2011 Lorca earthquake was a moderate 5.1 Mw earthquake that occurred 6:47 p.m. CEST on 11 May 2011, near the town of Lorca, causing significant localized damage in the Region of Murcia, Spain, and panic among locals, and displacing many from their homes. The quake was preceded by a magnitude 4.4 foreshock at 17:05, that inflicted substantial damage to many older structures in the area, including the historical Espolón Tower of Lorca Castle, the Hermitage of San Clemente and the Convent of Virgen de Las Huertas. Three people were killed by a falling cornice. A total of nine deaths have been confirmed, while dozens are reported injured. The earthquake was the worst to hit the region since a 5.0 Mw tremor struck west of Albolote, Granada in 1956.
The Valparaíso earthquake of April 2017 was a strong earthquake that shook the cities of Valparaíso and Santiago on Monday, April 24, 2017, at 18:38 local time. Its epicenter was located off the coast of the Valparaíso Region and had a magnitude of 6.9 Mw. On the scale of Mercalli, the earthquake reached an intensity of VII.
The 2021 Mala earthquake, with a Richter magnitude of 6.0 and moment magnitude of 5.9, struck on June 22, 2021, at 21:54:18 local time (UTC−5) with an epicenter off the coast of Mala in the department of Lima. Following the main event, there were more than 15 aftershocks, with the largest being a magnitude 4.8 event at 07:03 local time on June 23.
The 2016 Alboran Sea earthquake struck offshore, north northeast of Al Hoceïma, Morocco in the Strait of Gibraltar on 25 January at 04:22:02 UTC, or roughly 05:22:02 West Africa Time. At its strongest in the Alboran Sea, the earthquake measured 6.3–6.4 on the moment magnitude scale (Mw ) at a shallow hypocenter depth of 12 km (7.5 mi). Assigned a maximum Modified Mercalli scale intensity of VI (Strong), the earthquake caused one fatality, injuries to at least 30 persons, and moderate damage in Morocco and Spain.
A major earthquake struck northern Peru on November 28, 2021, 5:52 a.m. local time with a magnitude of 7.5 on the moment magnitude scale between the Amazonas and Loreto departments of Peru. A maximum Modified Mercalli intensity (MMI) of VII was reported in the town of Santa Maria de Nieva according to the Geological Institute of Peru.
On 19 September 2022, a moment magnitude 7.6-7.7 earthquake struck between the Mexican states of Michoacán and Colima at 13:05:06 local time. The earthquake had a depth of 26.9 km (16.7 mi), resulting in a maximum intensity of VIII (Severe) on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale. The USGS reported the epicentre was 35 km (22 mi) southwest of the town of Aquila. Two people were killed and at least 35 others were injured across several states. A magnitude 6.8 aftershock struck on 22 September, causing three more deaths.
