List of earthquakes in Puerto Rico facts for kids
Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands are located where two huge pieces of the Earth's crust, called tectonic plates, meet. These are the Caribbean plate and the North American plate. Because these plates are always moving and bumping into each other, this area often experiences earthquakes. To the north, the North American plate slides underneath the Caribbean plate. Also, many fault lines (cracks in the Earth's crust) cross Puerto Rico. This means Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands are on a smaller piece of crust that is constantly affected by these large plate movements. Puerto Rico is always at risk of experiencing strong earthquakes, sometimes even bigger than magnitude 7.0.
History of Earthquakes
Earthquakes have been happening in this region for a very long time. Scientists know that major fault lines crossing Puerto Rico have been active since ancient times. People started recording earthquakes here in the early 1600s. One of the first recorded earthquakes in the Americas happened on September 8, 1615. It started near the Dominican Republic and caused damage across Puerto Rico.
Scientists have been studying and recording earthquakes in Puerto Rico more closely since the 1900s. The Puerto Rico Seismic Network (RSPR) was created in 1974. It's part of the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez. Its main job is to find, study, and understand earthquake activity in Puerto Rico and the surrounding islands. The RSPR uses 25 special sensors called seismometers to detect earthquakes. These sensors are spread across Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the British Virgin Islands.
On average, about 5 earthquakes are recorded every day in this region. About 3 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.0 or higher happen each year. Most of the active fault lines are located in the ocean. This means that most earthquakes don't cause harm or major damage on land. Big, destructive earthquakes are quite rare in Puerto Rico.
However, because many large earthquakes happen at sea, the area is at risk of dangerous tsunamis (giant ocean waves). The last tsunami that caused a lot of damage in Puerto Rico happened on October 11, 1918. It was caused by the 1918 Aguadilla earthquake. More recently, the 2020 southwestern Puerto Rico earthquakes caused four deaths. In the Virgin Islands, the last earthquake to cause deaths and major damage was in 1867. This earthquake also created a tsunami that hit both the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.
Important Earthquakes in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
Here are some of the most important earthquakes that have affected Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands:
| Date | Name | Area | Mag. | MMI | Deaths | Injuries | Total damage / notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1615-09-08 | Hispaniola | Dominican Republic | – | – | – | – | One of the oldest recorded earthquakes in the region. It affected Hispaniola and caused damage in Puerto Rico. | |
| 1787-05-02 | Puerto Rico | Puerto Rico Trench | *8.0–8.5 | IX | – | – | Possibly the strongest earthquake to hit Puerto Rico since European settlers arrived. It caused major damage across the island. It destroyed parts of El Morro and other forts in San Juan. | |
| 1844-04-16 | Puerto Rico | Puerto Rico Trench | – | VIII | – | – | Major damage was recorded in Puerto Rico and Saint Thomas. Most houses in San Juan were damaged. | |
| 1867-11-18 | Virgin Islands | Virgin Islands | 7.3 | IX | 40+ | – | This earthquake caused a tsunami that affected the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. | |
| 1918-10-11 | Puerto Rico | Mona Passage | 7.1 | IX | 118 | – | This earthquake caused between $4 and $29 million USD in damage. Damage and injuries were reported across the island. | |
| 1946-08-04 | Dominican Republic | Dominican Republic | 8.1 | IX | *2,550 | – | This was a very large earthquake centered in the Dominican Republic. All deaths happened there, but a small tsunami reached Puerto Rico. This is the largest earthquake in the Caribbean region during the 20th century. | |
| 2010-05-16 | Moca | Puerto Rico | 5.8 | VI | – | – | Felt across Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and the US and British Virgin Islands. It caused minor damage in western Puerto Rico. It is the largest earthquake to happen on land in Puerto Rico in recent times. | |
| 2010-12-24 | Aguas Buenas | Puerto Rico | 5.1 | V | – | – | Felt across Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. It caused minor damage and power outages in the Caguas and San Juan areas. It is the largest earthquake to directly hit the San Juan Metropolitan region recently. | |
| 2014-01-13 | Hatillo | Puerto Rico Trench | 6.4 | V | – | – | This earthquake was felt all over Puerto Rico. | |
| 2019-09-24 | San Antonio | Mona Passage | 6.0 | V | – | – | Felt across Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. It caused some minor local damage. | |
| 2020-01-07 | Puerto Rico | Puerto Rico | 6.4 | VIII | 4 | 9 | This was the strongest earthquake in a series of shocks that affected southwestern Puerto Rico from late 2019 into 2020. It caused major damage and widespread power outages across the island. |
See also
