M6.3 Earthquake 19 km NE of Esmeraldas, Ecuador — April 25, 2025
2025-04-25 11:44:52 UTC (2025-04-25) · approx. 6:44 AM UTC-5 local
Felt by 61 people across nearby locations. Maximum shaking intensity MMI 7.4 (severe).
On April 25, 2025 at 11:44 UTC, a magnitude 6.3 shallow crustal earthquake struck 19 km NE of Esmeraldas, Ecuador, at a depth of 18.0 km and coordinates 1.0835°, -79.5319°. The earthquake was reported felt by 61 peopleacross nearby locations, with a maximum shaking intensity of Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) 7.4 (severe). The USGS PAGER system issued a yellow alert level for this event, indicating local impact possible. This earthquake was detected by 208 seismic stations with excellent location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 695, making it a moderate-impact event. The nearest populated place is Esmeraldas (population 165,216).
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 6.3 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 43 kilotons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 13 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
Nearest Populated Places
ShakeMap — predicted shaking intensity
Modeled ground-motion intensity contoured on the Modified Mercalli scale (MMI). Computed by the USGS from the moment-tensor solution and regional ground-motion prediction equations.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey ShakeMap. View interactive ShakeMap on USGS
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 61 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report
Population exposure (USGS PAGER)
Estimated population that experienced each level of shaking. Based on the USGS PAGER rapid impact assessment, which combines ShakeMap output with global population grids.
| Shaking intensity (MMI) | Description | Population exposed |
|---|---|---|
| MMI 3 | weak | 1,714,263 |
| MMI 4 | light | 4,079,227 |
| MMI 5 | moderate | 238,041 |
| MMI 6 | strong | 72,555 |
| MMI 7 | very strong | 217,470 |
Earthquake Details
-79.5319°E
Technical Information
Nearby Earthquakes (Last 7 Days)
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 6.3 earthquake near Esmeraldas, Ecuador?
The magnitude 6.3 earthquake that struck 19 km NE of Esmeraldas, Ecuador on April 25, 2025 at 11:44 UTC had a depth of 18.0 km. It was felt by 61 people with maximum shaking intensity of MMI 7.4 (severe). For context, this was a strong earthquake capable of causing significant damage.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at 1.0835°, -79.5319°, which is 19 km NE of Esmeraldas, Ecuador. The nearest populated place is Esmeraldas (population 165,216).
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 6.3 earthquakes can continue for weeks to months and gradually diminish over time.
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us7000pv06). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2025, April 25, 2025). M6.3 Earthquake 19 km NE of Esmeraldas, Ecuador — April 25, 2025. Retrieved July 11, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us7000pv06/