Moderate mag. 5.6 earthquake - 4.8 km north of Motozintla, Chiapas, Mexico, on Monday, Dec 13, 2021 at 1:03 am (GMT -6) -

Moderate magnitude 5.6 earthquake at 180 km depth

13 Dec 07:05 UTC: First to report: VolcanoDiscovery after 2 minutes.
13 Dec 07:09: Now using data updates from GFZ
... [show all] ...
13 Dec 07:28: Now using data updates from SSN

Update Mon, 13 Dec 2021, 07:15

Moderate yet deep magnitude 5.5 quake hits 14 km southeast of Comalapa, Mexico early morning

5.5 quake 13 Dec 1:03 am (GMT -6)

An earthquake of magnitude 5.5 occurred only 12 minutes ago 14 km southeast of Comalapa, Mexico, the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) reported.
The quake hit at an intermediate to considerable depth of 180 km beneath the epicenter near Comalapa, Frontera Comalapa, Chiapas, Mexico, early morning on Monday, December 13th, 2021, at 1:03 am local time. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.
Our monitoring service identified a second report from France's Réseau National de Surveillance Sismique (RéNaSS) which listed the quake at magnitude 5.1. A third agency, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), reported the same quake at magnitude 5.4.
Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should not have caused any significant damage, but was probably felt by many people as light vibration in the area of the epicenter.
Weak shaking might have been felt in Paso Hondo (pop. 3,700) located 12 km from the epicenter, Comalapa (pop. 18,700) 14 km away, Motozintla (pop. 23,800) 32 km away, Cacahoatan (pop. 16,600) 67 km away, Huixtla (pop. 32,000) 67 km away, Comitan (pop. 97,500) 75 km away, and Tapachula (pop. 202,700) 79 km away.
VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you're in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.

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Earthquake data

Earthquake details

Date & time	Dec 13, 2021 07:03:07 UTC -
Local time at epicenter	Monday, Dec 13, 2021 at 1:03 am (GMT -6)
Status	Confirmed
Magnitude	5.6
Depth	180.0 km
Epicenter latitude / longitude	15.41°N / 92.24°W (El Porvenir, Chiapas, Mexico)
Antipode	15.41°S / 87.76°E
Shaking intensity	Weak shaking
Felt	72 reports
Primary data source	SSN (Servicio Sismológico Nacional)
Nearest volcano	Tacana (34 km / 21 mi)
Nearby towns and cities	5 km (3 mi) N of Motozintla (pop: 23,800) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 30 km (18 mi) SSW of Comalapa (pop: 18,700) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 39 km (24 mi) NE of Huixtla (pop: 32,000) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 47 km (29 mi) N of Cacahoatan (Cacahoatán) (pop: 16,600) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 56 km (35 mi) N of Tapachula de Cordova y Ordoñez (pop: 202,700) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 71 km (44 mi) E of Mapastepec (pop: 17,900) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 94 km (58 mi) S of Comitan (pop: 97,500) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 177 km (110 mi) SSE of Tuxtla Gutiérrez (pop: 537,100) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 204 km (127 mi) WNW of Guatemala (Guatemala) (pop: 994,900) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby 857 km (532 mi) ESE of Mexico (Ciudad de México) (pop: 12,294,200) \| Show on map \| Quakes nearby
Weather at epicenter at time of quake	Scattered Clouds 11.6°C (53 F), humidity: 95%, wind: 2 m/s (3 kts) from NE
Estimated seismic energy released	1.6 x 10¹³ joules (4.4 gigawatt hours, equivalent to 3788 tons of TNT or 0.2 atomic bombs!) \| about seismic energy

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Data for the same earthquake reported by different agencies

Info: The more agencies report about the same quake and post similar data, the more confidence you can have in the data. It takes normally up to a few hours until earthquake parameters are calculated with near-optimum precision.

Mag.	Depth	Location	Source
5.6	180 km	Mexico: 5 Km Al NORTE De MOTOZINTLA, CHIS	SSN
5.7	187 km	GUATEMALA	EMSC
5.7	180 km	Mexico-Guatemala Border Region	RaspberryShake
5.6	154 km	62 Km Al Noroeste De Huehuetenango, Guatemala	INETER
5.1	189 km	Guatemala: Near Tapachula	RENASS
5.6	180 km	5 Km S of El Pacayal, Mexico	GFZ
5.7	180 km	Mexico-Guatemala Border Region	USGS
5.7	176 km	Mexico-Guatemala Border Region	GeoAu

Most recent quakes Top 20 past 24 hrs Quakes in Guatemala

User reports for this quake (75)

User reports estimate the perceived ground shaking intensity according to the MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity) scale.

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Cobán, Alta Verapaz, Guatemala (199.9 km E of epicenter) [Map] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / 2-5 s : The creaking woke me up first, and then a jolt and more creaking. A flock of resident wild parrots flew by chattering, a moment after the shaking, which is very strange at 1:06am... | 2 users found this interesting.

Altamirano, Chiapas (149.5 km N of epicenter) [Map] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 1-2 s : Estaba acostado y sentí que se movio mi cama | 3 users found this interesting.

Comitan, Municipio de Comitán de Domínguez, Chiapas (90.5 km N of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / vertical swinging (up and down) / 20-30 s : Estaba en la cama a punto de dormir y sentí como se movía mi cama, era demasiado | 3 users found this interesting.

La Independencia, Chiapas (97 km NNE of epicenter) [Map] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / rattling, vibrating / 1-2 s : Estaba acostada en mi cama y de repente sentí como si una onda balanceara mi cama , fue muy corto pero notorio. | One user found this interesting.

Tapachula (56.6 km S of epicenter) [Map] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / 5-10 s : At the beginning it felt like a sudden, horizontal shake that woke me up. There was a minor crack sound in the building and the swinging faded quicky in the lapse of aprox. 5-8 seconds. | One user found this interesting.

En Cintalapa (213.2 km NW of epicenter) [Map] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / 5-10 s : Yo estaba durmiendo cuando empezó a temblar u no paraba y mi mamá nos despertó y bajamos corriendo | One user found this interesting.

Quetzaltenango, Guatemala / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s : Weak shaking | 3 users found this interesting.

QUETZALTENANGO (96 km SE of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 2-5 s : Frightened | 2 users found this interesting.

Suchitepequez (138.1 km SE of epicenter) [Map] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / very short : Fue muy rápido | 2 users found this interesting.

Tuxtla Gutierres, Chiapas (175.4 km NNW of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / single lateral shake / 20-30 s : Estaba recostado en mi cama cuando sentí que se empezó a mover la cama de un lado a otro | 2 users found this interesting.

Champerico, Retalhuleu (129.6 km SSE of epicenter) [Map] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 10-15 s : Fue terrible | 2 users found this interesting.

Tonalá Chiapas / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s : There was a brief sound/wave then two seconds later the vibration returned and the building shook lightly fo about three seconds | One user found this interesting.

Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas, Mexico (164 km NNW of epicenter) [Map] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating / 15-20 s : woke from sleep. Felt like low humming. Dogs began barking and a car alarm was activated. Lasted about 20-30 seconds. I am on second floor.

Huixtla / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 2-5 s : Very strong the whole house was shaking. | 2 users found this interesting.

Flores Costa cuca / not felt : Sismo muy fuerte y duradero reporte desde flores Costa cuca | 2 users found this interesting.

Quiché, Guatemala / Light shaking (MMI IV) / single lateral shake / 15-20 s : I was a little scary, but I am fine | 2 users found this interesting.

Tapachula (56.9 km S of epicenter) [Map] / Light shaking (MMI IV) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 10-15 s : Cagando y cuando estaba en la taza me temblaron las nalgas | One user found this interesting.

Tactic, Alta Verapaz (287 km ENE of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 5-10 s : Inquietud por si continuaba por más tiempo o más fuerte | One user found this interesting.

Coatepec, Quetzaltenango (89.2 km SSE of epicenter) [Map] / Light shaking (MMI IV) : Tuve la sensación de que continuaría | One user found this interesting.

Guatemala Coban Alta Verapaz (196.7 km E of epicenter) [Map] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / rattling, vibrating / 2-5 s : Durmiendo | One user found this interesting.

Soloma, Huehuetenango (90.9 km ENE of epicenter) [Map] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / horizontal (sideways) swinging / 20-30 s : Comento moviéndose despacio de forma horizontal y fue subiendo de intensidad | One user found this interesting.

San Rafael la Independencia, Huehuetenango, Guatem (81.6 km ENE of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / both vertical and horizontal swinging / 2-5 s : Esruvo intenso el temblor, tipo 01:03 am | One user found this interesting.

comitan de dominguez (94.4 km N of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / complex rolling (tilting in multiple directions) / 5-10 s : ESTABA SENTADA TRABAJANDO, LA COMPUTADORA Y LA SILLA SE EMPEZARON A MOVER EN AMBOS SENTIDOS | One user found this interesting.

Tapachula, Chiapas (56.8 km S of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / vibration and rolling / 5-10 s : Tembló | One user found this interesting.

Tapachula (27.4 km NNE of epicenter) [Map] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / rattling, vibrating / 10-15 s : En mi cama, tembló el piso y sacudió los muebles. | One user found this interesting.

Amatenango de la frontera Chiapas (17.9 km SSE of epicenter) [Map] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / 2-5 s : durmiendo en cama | One user found this interesting.

Palmar, Quetzaltenango (110.3 km SE of epicenter) [Map] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / vibration and rolling / 5-10 s : Acostado, tratando de dormir en el segundo nivel de la casa, vibración fuerte | One user found this interesting.

La Trinitaria, Chiapas (84.1 km NNE of epicenter) [Map] / Moderate shaking (MMI V) / vibration and rolling / 10-15 s : Estaba dormido y me despertó el osilamiento | One user found this interesting.

Chajul, Municipio de Chajul, Departamento del Quiché (127 km E of epicenter) [Map] / Very weak shaking (MMI II) / complex motion difficult to describe / 5-10 s : Estaba durmiendo y me despertó el temblor | One user found this interesting.

Cobán (199.1 km E of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / single lateral shake / 5-10 s : I was in my bedroom in my bed GUATEMALA COBÁN ALTA VERAPAZ | One user found this interesting.

Tuxtla Gutiérrez (178.3 km NW of epicenter) [Map] / Weak shaking (MMI III) / 30-60 s : Fue un temblor leve | One user found this interesting.

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Aftershocks

[More info]

Recorded aftershocks, latest first (4 quakes)

Date and time	Mag Depth	Location	Details
Jan 31, 2022 07:25 22 weeks ago	3.8 202 km	45 km W of Huehuetenango, Departamento de Huehuetenango, Guatemala	More
Dec 30, 2021 08:07 27 weeks ago	3.8 146 km	Mexico: 33 Km Al NOROESTE De MOTOZINTLA, CHIS	More
Dec 25, 2021 07:57 28 weeks ago	4.0 145 km	25 km NW of Motozintla, Chiapas, Mexico	More
Dec 13, 2021 07:18 29 weeks ago	3.8 181 km	4.8 km N of Motozintla, Chiapas, Mexico	More

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