Central Chile hit by 8.3 magnitude earthquake

September 17, 2015

Earthquake of 8.3-magnitude on Richter scale has hit off Chile’s coast in Illapel, the capital of Choapa Province in central Coquimbo Region of Chile.
US Geological Survey has noted its epicenter at a depth of 12.5 kilometers off Chile’s coast in Illapel. After the initial earthquake, two aftershock quakes of magnitudes 6.2 and 6.4 occurred west of Illapel.

Tsunami Warning

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) has issued tsunami warnings for Chile, P
eru and Hawaii.
The PTWC also issued tsunami alert for waves of between 0.3 to 1 metres for Japan, Antarctica, and most of the South Pacific countries including New Zealand, Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu and Solomon Islands.

Chile and Earthquakes

Chile is one of the world’s most earthquake prone countries as it lies on so called Pacific Ring of Fire.
It is located on the seismically active location that runs along the boundary between the Nazca and South American tectonic plates.
These plates are continuously grinding each other at a rate of up to 80mm per year.
The strongest earthquake recorded on Earth of magnitude 9.3 on Richter scale had hit Chile in 1960 which had killed more than 5000 people.