El Salvador Earthquake

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Posting Date: January 15, 2001, 6:30:00 AM

A major earthquake struck El Salvador on Saturday, January 13, 2001, at 11:33 a.m. local time (1733 GMT). The quake had a moment magnitude of 7.6 and a focal depth of about 40 kilometers, according to preliminary estimates from the US Geological Survey. Its epicenter was located 65 miles southeast of San Salvador, off the Pacific Coast. The quake was probably a result of the Cocos Plate subducting beneath Central America at the Middle America trench. The earthquake was felt across El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Honduras, as far south as Panama and as far north as Mexico City, a distance of some 1,760 kilometers. There have been more than 600 aftershocks, some with a magnitude of more than 5. The worst damage was in El Salvador, where quake-triggered landslides buried hundreds of homes. National police estimate that some 4,692 homes were destroyed and 16,148 damaged. The death toll nationwide has reached 403, with 2,000 people injured and at least 1,000 people still missing and feared dead. At least 8 people are reported dead in Guatemala as well. AIR will continue to monitor events in this area and will post additional information as necessary.

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Posting Date: January 15, 2001, 6:30:00 AM