Strong Quake Rocks Venezuela But Causes Little Damage. Why?

Powerful Earthquake Rocks Venezuela; Buildings Evacuated in Caracas

The 7.3 quake was the largest to strike Venezuela since 1900.
Buildings were evacuated Caracas, the capital city,
The earthquake, felt throughout the Caribbean, happened at a considerable depth, which limited damage.

A powerful earthquake shook eastern Venezuela on Tuesday afternoon, forcing residents in the captial city of Caracas to evacuate buildings to flee homes.

The 7.3 quake – the largest to strike Venezuela since 1900, according to the U.S. Geological Survey – was felt throughout the Caribbean. But at a depth of some 76 miles (123 kilometers) it appeared to have caused only limited damage even near its epicenter a few miles off the sparsely populated Cariaco peninsula stretching into the eastern Caribbean. A similar-sized quake in the same area left dozens dead in 1997.

Seismologist Lucy Jones, a research associate with the California Institute of Technology, said the earthquake’s considerable depth likely prevented a tragedy.

“Shaking does die off at a distance,” she said, adding that the depth of the quake means there are likely to be fewer aftershocks.

The quake was felt as far away as Colombia’s capital of Bogata.

In Cumana, the biggest city near the quake’s center, supermarket shelves came crashing down. At a shopping center, a woman caught in the panic of people rushing out of the building fell on an escalator and injured herself.

In Caracas, concrete fell from an unfinished office building.

The quake also caused damage in Trinidad, which reported strong shaking. Power outages were reported across Trinidad, too. People ran into the street and gasped as large glass panes at one supermarket shattered and falling concrete smashed several cars. The quake also cracked walls and thousands of goods fell off supermarket shelves.

No injuries or deaths were immediately reported.

The earthquake also was felt in Guyana, Barbados and Grenada.

The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.

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