M6.0 earthquake near Vicuña, Coquimbo Region

What happened

A magnitude 6 earthquake struck 86 km NW of San José de Jáchal, Argentina on 15 Mar 1970, 12:39 UTC at a depth of 117 km.

Earthquakes of this size are classed as Strong. Can cause damage in populated areas up to tens of kilometres away. This was an intermediate-depth earthquake, so shaking is spread over a wider, gentler area.

The nearest town in our records is Vicuña, about 132 km away in Coquimbo Region, Chile.