M6.3 - OFFSHORE CARABOBO, VENEZUELA

Tectonic Summary

The September 12, 2009 earthquake offshore of Venezuela occurred at a shallow depth as a result of right-lateral strike-slip faulting. The tectonics of this area are dominated by the eastward motion of the Caribbean plate with respect to the South American plate, at a rate of approximately 20mm/yr. Major fault systems in the region include the Boconó fault further to the southwest, and the San Sebastián and El Pilar faults which run from west to east near the earthquake epicenter; these faults accommodate the majority of the motion between the two plates. The location of today’s event indicates it may have occurred on the San Sebastián or El Pilar faults, though further analysis of the earthquake is needed.
The region surrounding the September 12th event is known to be seismically active, and has hosted strong earthquakes in the past; previous damaging earthquakes include an M6.5 quake in July 1967 that caused approximately 240 fatalities, and an M5.4 quake in May 1989 which made more than 2000 people homeless in the Tucacas area.

Earthquake Information for South America