A earthquake of magnitude 3.3 was registered in the municipality of San Cayetano, Cundinamarcaaccording to preliminary data from the Colombian Geological Service (SGC).
The earthquake occurred at 01:10 (local time) on June 28 and had a depth of 115 kilometers, with a latitude of 5.346666667 and a longitude of -74.0915.
It is important to mention that this information published by the SGC is preliminary and may be subject to changes or updates both in the magnitude of the tremor and in the exact location of origin.
In Colombia the earthquake intensity It is measured with the European Macroseismic Scale (EMS-98), which starts from intensity 2, described as “barely felt” by very few people at rest; level 3 is classified as “slightly felt”where there may be swinging of some objects.
An earthquake is considered to be of intensity 4 when it is “broadly felt” by many people inside buildings and by few outside. Windows, doors and plates vibrate. On level 5, “strongly felt”small objects move, doors or windows swing, and slight cracks in buildings or houses may be detected.
Type 6 intensity implies a “slight damage”, in this range some people can lose their balance; Some objects fall and many buildings have minor damage. Level 7 occurs when there is a “moderate damage”That is, heavy furniture can move and many buildings have cracks and wall cladding may fall off.
Finally, at intensities above 7, a “severe damage”: at this point many people have difficulty standing; heavy objects fall; and old, weak structures can collapse.
Colombia is considered a country of high seismic risk because it is located in the Pacific Ring of Firea region that concentrates 75% of the volcanoes that exist in the world and where approximately 80% of the volcanoes occur. strongest tremors worldwide.
Also known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, it is made up of the mountainous area of western Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, the United States and Canada, then bending at the height of the Aleutian Islands and descending along the coasts and islands of Russia, Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, East Timor, Brunei, Singapore, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and New Zealand.
In the specific case of Colombia, the country is located in two important subduction areas, since on the one hand it has the Nazca plate with the South American and this last one also clashes with the Caribbean platewhich causes it to tremble constantly.
Given this situation, the departments of Nariño, Chocó, Caldas and Santander are the places where the most tremors occur; in the latter is the municipality of Los Santos, which is the second most seismic area in the world.
Ecuador-Colombia of 1868
Two earthquakes were recorded in the border area of Ecuador and Colombia on August 15 and 16, 1868, with magnitudes of 6.3 and 6.7, the latter being the most deadly with a duration of almost a minute of movement.
The first of these occurred in the towns of El Ángel and La Concepción, while the second earthquake left the Ecuadorian city of Ibarra completely devastated. It is believed that this movement caused around 70 thousand victims, with deaths and injuries in both countries.
Cúcuta earthquake of 1875
Also known as the Andes Earthquake, this earthquake occurred on May 18, 1875 and had a magnitude of between 7.5 and 8.5 in Cúcuta, although it also had repercussions in the neighboring Venezuelan state of Táchira.
Although some claim that the number of victims of this earthquake reached 3,000, at least in the affected area of Colombia only 461 bodies were found. Hot springs from the sites known today as “Agua Hedionda”, “El Tampaco” and “Aguas Calientes” were also found.
1906 earthquake and tsunami
An 8.8 magnitude earthquake struck the province of Esmeralda in Ecuador, bordering Colombia, on January 31. This movement generated a tsunami that left 1,500 dead. According to information from the SGC, the waves reached five meters high and covered the Colombian region of Tumaco.
1994 Páez earthquake
The earthquake originated in the foothills of the Central Andes mountain range of Cauca, in southwestern Colombia, on June 6, 1994. It had a magnitude of 6.4 and left around 800 people dead, mainly inhabitants of settlements near the Páez River. This is considered the second deadliest in the history of the country.
Coffee Axis of 1999
Considered the worst earthquake in the country’s recent history, this tremor affected the departments of Quindío and Risaralda in Colombia, leaving more than a thousand people dead.
The earthquake occurred on January 25, 1999, and had a magnitude of 6.2. Several hospitals were affected and resources to deal with the emergency were limited. The quake left four thousand people injured and nearly 500 missing.
Around eight thousand coffee farms were completely or partially destroyed, also 13 thousand structures of many types of companies and industries were affected.
