4.9

M4.9 Earthquake 10 km SSE of La Reforma, Mexico — July 2, 2020

2020-07-02 16:17:55 UTC (2020-07-02) · approx. 9:17 AM UTC-7 local

Felt by 7 people across nearby locations.

MagnitudeM4.9(mww)
Time16:17 UTC≈ 9:17 AM UTC-7
Depth8.3 kmshallow crustal
Coordinates16.540°, -97.804°
Felt by7DYFI responses
Status✓ Reviewed by USGS

On July 2, 2020 at 16:17 UTC, a magnitude 4.9 shallow crustal earthquake struck 10 km SSE of La Reforma, Mexico, at a depth of 8.3 km and coordinates 16.5395°, -97.8039°.

Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 4.9 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 338 metric tons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 1.4 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.

The epicenter is located in Mexico, a region characterized by the Middle America Trench, where the Cocos Plate subducts beneath the North American Plate. The nearest mapped fault system is the Middle America Trench. View all earthquakes in Mexico.

Learn more: Magnitude scale · Aftershock sequences

Map showing earthquake epicenter at 16.54°, -97.80°

Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking

Aggregated felt-report intensity from 7 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.

USGS DYFI community-reported intensity map for the M4.9 earthquake near 10 km SSE of La Reforma, Mexico

Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report

Earthquake Details

Magnitude
4.9 mww
Depth
8.3 km
shallow crustal
Location
16.5395°N
-97.8039°E
Felt Reports
7
DYFI responses
Community Intensity
3.9
CDI from reports

Technical Information

Event ID
us7000agrw
Event Type
earthquake
Status
✓ Reviewed
Significance
372
Azimuthal Gap
90.0°
Min Station Distance
0.829°
RMS Residual
0.93 sec
Last Updated
2025-12-22 18:37:25 UTC

Common Questions

How strong was the magnitude 4.9 earthquake near La Reforma, Mexico?

The magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck 10 km SSE of La Reforma, Mexico on July 2, 2020 at 16:17 UTC had a depth of 8.3 km. For context, this was a light earthquake commonly felt near the epicenter.

Where did the earthquake occur?

The earthquake epicenter was located at 16.5395°, -97.8039°, which is 10 km SSE of La Reforma, Mexico. View all earthquakes in Mexico.

Were there aftershocks?

Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 4.9 earthquakes can continue for several days and gradually diminish over time.

Has Mexico had earthquakes this big before?

The largest recorded earthquake in Mexico was the M8.1 Chiapas earthquake of September 8, 2017. Today's magnitude 4.9 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.

Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us7000agrw). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.

Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2020, July 2, 2020). M4.9 Earthquake 10 km SSE of La Reforma, Mexico — July 2, 2020. Retrieved December 22, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us7000agrw/