Earthquakes in El Salvador Today
The Cocos plate subducts beneath El Salvador's Pacific coast, and a chain of active volcanoes and shallow faults runs through the populated interior. In 2001 two earthquakes a month apart, one offshore and one beneath the volcanic chain, together killed more than a thousand people.
Danger Level (72h)
72-hour composite hazard forecast
Recent Quakes (30d)
Recorded in the last 30 days
Max Magnitude (30d)
Largest earthquake in the last 30 days
Off the coast of Usulután, El Salvador
3mo ago•72.7 km•Felt by about 8,078,635 people
Recent earthquakes
20Counts cover the seismic belts this platform monitors in El Salvador, not its administrative borders. A monitored belt can reach across a border, and events there are listed with the country of their epicentre.
Monitored regions
Volcanoes of El Salvador
2 dedicated profiles · 17 Holocene volcanoes in total
Tectonic setting
The Cocos plate subducts beneath El Salvador's Pacific coast, and a chain of active volcanoes and shallow faults runs through the populated interior. In 2001 two earthquakes a month apart, one offshore and one beneath the volcanic chain, together killed more than a thousand people.
Frequently asked questions
How often do earthquakes occur in El Salvador?
Our catalogue recorded 88 earthquakes across the 1 seismic belts monitored in El Salvador over the last 30 days, the strongest reaching M4.6.
Why are there so many earthquakes in El Salvador?
The Cocos plate subducts beneath El Salvador's Pacific coast, and a chain of active volcanoes and shallow faults runs through the populated interior. In 2001 two earthquakes a month apart, one offshore and one beneath the volcanic chain, together killed more than a thousand people.
What was the strongest earthquake in El Salvador?
The strongest earthquake in El Salvador in our historical catalogue is the M7.7 event of January 13, 2001. Death toll: 844.
What is the emergency number in El Salvador?
The emergency number in El Salvador is 911, answered by Policía Nacional Civil / Protección Civil. After strong shaking, keep the line free for those trapped or injured and check official channels for aftershock and tsunami advisories.
Who monitors earthquakes in El Salvador?
The national seismic authority is Observatorio de Amenazas, Ministerio de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (MARN). EarthquakeLive cross-checks its bulletins against 18 international networks, so an event may appear here with a slightly different magnitude until the agencies converge on a final solution.