Venezuela Experiences Its Strongest Earthquake in Over a Century, Measuring 7.5 Magnitude

On Wednesday, a magnitude 7.5 temblor struck Venezuela, marking the country’s strongest seismic event—or offshore occurrence—since 1900, as reported by the U.S. Geological Survey.

The U.S.G.S. catalog shows that a magnitude 7.7 quake occurred off Venezuela’s coast on October 29, 1900.

Since instrumental recordings were unavailable for the 1900 event, its magnitude is inferred from historical damage and eyewitness accounts, explained Paule Earle, a U.S.G.S. geophysicist.

The San Narciso earthquake of 1900 rattled Caracas before dawn, claiming 21 lives, injuring 50, and toppling churches, government structures, and residences throughout the city, per an agency impact report.

More than two weeks after the event, The New York Times reported on November 17, 1900 that roughly 300 buildings had collapsed, the university tower and several church spires had fallen, and government facilities sustained considerable damage.

The Times also noted that many Venezuelans were forced to seek shelter in tents.

The U.S.G.S. warned that Wednesday’s magnitude 7.5 quake—preceded by a magnitude 7.2 foreshock—could prove far more lethal than the 1900 event, although casualty figures and damage extent remained uncertain. Experts characterized the pair as a foreshock-main shock sequence, with the 7.2 tremor acting as the precursor to the larger 7.5 main shock.

“An earthquake can alter stress in the crust, triggering additional quakes—likely what transpired in Venezuela,” remarked William Barnhart, a U.S.G.S. geophysicist.

Venezuela’s location at the boundary of the South American and Caribbean plates makes seismic activity relatively common, he added.

Venezuela has experienced several other quakes of magnitude 7.0 or higher, including a magnitude 7.3 event on August 21, 2018, and a magnitude 7.0 shock on July 9, 1997.

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