A magnitude 4.9 earthquake occurred on the evening of Thursday, September 23, 2021 at 8:59 p.m. local time near Pijijiapan, Chiapas, Mexico, as reported by the German Geoscience Research Center (GFZ).
According to preliminary data, the earthquake was located at a shallow depth of 10 km. Shallow earthquakes are felt more strongly than deep ones because they are closer to the surface. The exact magnitude, epicenter and depth of the quake could be revised in the coming hours or minutes, as seismologists review the data and refine their calculations, or when other agencies release their report.
Our monitoring service identified a second report from the Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC) which also listed the 4.9 magnitude earthquake.
Based on preliminary seismic data, the quake should have been widely felt by almost everyone in the epicenter area. It could have caused slight to moderate damage.
Moderate tremors probably occurred in Ceniceros (350 inhabitants) located 1 km from the epicenter.
In El Carmen (1,400 inhabitants) located 6 km from the epicenter, Joaquin Miguel Gutiérrez (Margaritas) (1,600 inhabitants) 9 km away, Pijijiapan (16,900 inhabitants) 15 km and Mapastepec (17,900 inhabitants) .) at 33 km, the earthquake should have been felt as a slight tremor.
Weak tremors could be felt in Villaflores (37,200 inhabitants) located 77 km from the epicenter, Tonala (35,300 inhabitants) 86 km and Huixtla (32,000 inhabitants) 89 km.
VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update the magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant earthquake news becomes available. If you are in the region, please share your experience with us through our reporting mechanism, online or through our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone in the world who is interested in learning more about this earthquake.

If you were or still are in this area during the earthquake help others with your comments and report it here.

Date and hour : 24 Sep 2021 01:59:54 UTC –
Local time at epicenter: Thursday 23 Sep 2021 20:59 (GMT -5)
Magnitude: 5.1
Depth: 84.0 km

Latitude / longitude of epicenter: 15.17 ° N / 93.28 ° W↗ (North Pacific Ocean, Mexico)
Antipode: 15.17 ° S / 86.72 ° E↗
Nearest volcano: Tacana (124 km / 77 mi)

Nearby towns and villages:
33 km (21 mi) SSO of La Esperanza (El Zapotal) (pop: 1,030) -> Watch the earthquakes nearby!
47 km (29 mi) SSO of Joaquin Miguel Gutiérrez (Margaritas) (pop: 1,620) -> See nearby earthquakes!
50 km (31 mi) southwest of Mapastepec (pop: 17,900) -> Observe the earthquakes nearby!
58 km (36 mi) south of Pijijiapan (pop: 16,900) -> See nearby earthquakes!
69 km (43 mi) WW of Escuintla (pop: 9,570) -> See nearby earthquakes!
76 km (47 mi) west of Villa Comaltitlan (San Juan) (pop: 7,200) -> Observe the earthquakes nearby!
88 km (54 mi) west of Huixtla (pop: 32,000) -> Observe the earthquakes nearby!
98 km (61 mi) southwest of Angel Albino Corzo (Jaltenango de la Paz) (pop: 10,400) -> Observe the earthquakes nearby!
114 km (71 mi) to WNW of Tapachula (pop: 202,700) -> See nearby earthquakes!
781 km (485 mi) southeast of Mexico (pop: 12,294,200) -> Observe the earthquakes nearby!

Main data source: SSN (Servicio Sismológico Nacional)

Estimated energy released: 2.8 x 10¹² joules (783 megawatt hours, equivalent to 674 tonnes of TNT) Find out more

Based on its magnitude, the fault that was active during the earthquake ruptured over an area of ​​approx. 13 km² (= 5 square miles) as a first-rate estimate. The length of the rupture zone was therefore probably about 6 km (4 mi).
Aftershocks typically occur during the days and weeks following the earthquake at or near the same fault, at distances of up to approx. twice the length of the rupture zone.
The often largely linear arrangement of aftershock epicenters encompasses the main shock rupture zone (check the map below to verify).

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