Earthquakes in Costa Rica

In Costa Rica there are partly large earthquakes with strengths of more than 7.0, which cause damages within a radius of over 100 kilometers. Due to the special tectonic situation of the country, there are more earthquakes than average.

Since 1950 more than 190 people have been killed by direct consequences of earthquakes. 4 earthquakes also caused a subsequent tsunami, which claimed further lifes and damages.

Other natural hazards in Costa Rica:
› Volcanos
› Tsunamis
› The most severe natural disasters worldwide

Back to overview: Costa Rica

Earthquakes in Costa Rica since 1950

The strongest earthquake in Costa Rica happened on 10/05/1950 in the region Costa Rica-Nicaragua with a magnitude of 7.7 on the Richter scale. The earthquake also triggered a tsunami with further victims and destructions.

Date	Region	Tiefe	Magnitude	Deaths
11/13/2017	Jaco	8 km	6.5	2
12/01/2016	Paraiso, Turrialba	38 km	5.3	0
09/05/2012	Nicoya	7 km	7.6	2
01/08/2009	La Paz	35 km	6.1	23
05/26/2008	Panama-Costa Rica	33 km	5.6	0
11/20/2004	San Jose, Parrita, Quepos	22 km	6.4	8
07/10/1993	Turrialba, Cartago	58 km	5.8	2
08/09/1991	Cartago	49 km	4.7	0
04/22/1991	Limon, Pandora	51 km	7.6	87
12/22/1990	Alajuela, Santiago De Puriscal	54 km	5.7	2
06/08/1990	Santiago De Puriscal	50 km	4.6	0
03/25/1990	Puntarenas, San Jose	55 km	7.0	0
07/03/1983	San Jose	23 km	6.2	2
04/03/1983	Se, Panama	1 km	7.3	6
04/14/1973	Tilaran, Arenal, Rio Chiquito		6.5	26
09/01/1955	Costa Rica		5.8	10
12/30/1952	Costa Rica		0.0	29
10/05/1950	Costa Rica-Nicaragua	31 km	7.7	0

These statistics are based on datas from the National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service (NGDC/WDS): Significant Earthquake Database. doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K. Several data have been summarized and translated.