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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forums5.7 Earthquake hits Puerto Ruco
Jan. 6, 2020, 7:51 AM EST
By Elisha Fieldstadt
A 5.7-magnitude earthquake that shook the entire island of Puerto Rico Monday morning was the strongest in a flurry of quakes to strike the U.S. territory in recent days.
The relatively shallow 10 kilometer deep quake struck just south of the island, where it was felt most strongly, according to the U.S. Geological Service. There was no tsunami threat, according to officials.
My entire family woke up screaming, Dr. Sindia Alvarado, who lives in the southern coastal town of Peñuelas told The Associated Press. I thought the house was going to crack in half.
Some residents lost power as the electric system was shut down as a precaution, said the head of the Puerto Rico Emergency Management Agency, Carlos Acevedo. He said a house in the municipality of Guayanilla had collapsed and rocks fell from a mountain onto a main southern road.
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USGS is saying 5.8:
https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/pr2020006006/executive#pager
Amishman
(5,559 posts)They have a subduction zone right offshore to the north.
USGS has said the plate boundary at the Puerto Rico trench could produce 8.0 quakes
The Puerto Rico trench and surrounding area produces the strongest known gravitational anomaly. It's one of the least understood systems in terms of geology and plate tectonics
malaise
(269,157 posts)Just last night we were talking about the January 14 1907 Kingston quake and the fact that we are well overdue
http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/pages/history/story0017.html
That devastating quake in Haiti was on January 12 January 2010.
https://escweb.wr.usgs.gov/share/mooney/142.pdf
The Caribbean and Central America has had: (M1.5 or greater)
17 earthquakes in the past 24 hours
546 earthquakes in the past 7 days
1,389 earthquakes in the past 30 days
6,449 earthquakes in the past 365 days
The largest earthquake in The Caribbean and Central America:
today: 5.8 in Indios, Guayanilla, Puerto Rico
this week: 5.8 in Indios, Guayanilla, Puerto Rico
this month: 6.0 in Lejanías, Meta, Colombia
this year: 6.6 in La Libertad, La Libertad, El Salvador