M6.5 earthquake near Güiria, Sucre

What happened

A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck 50 km WNW of Güiria, Venezuela on 20 Sept 1968, 06:00 UTC at a depth of 103 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 Güiria, about 51 km away in Sucre, Venezuela.