The United States Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 6.5 Earthquake at a depth of 69.7 km, roughly 43 km offshore of the municipality of Intipucá in La Unión Department, El Salvador, slightly after 6.20 pm local time on Tuesday 18 July 2023 (slightly after 0.20 am on Wednesday 19 July, GMT). The quake was felt across much of Central America, from southern Mexico to Costa Rica, though there are no reports of any major damage or injuries.
El Salvador and the other countries of Central America are located on the southern part of the Caribbean Plate, close to its boundary with the Cocos Plate, which underlies part of the east Pacific. The Cocos Plate is being pushed northwards by expansion of the crust along the East Pacific Rise, and is subducted beneath the Caribbean Plate along the Middle American Trench, which runs parallel to the south coast of Central America, passing under the peninsula as it sinks into the Earth's interior. This is not a smooth process, the plates tend to stick together, breaking apart again once the pressure from the northward movement of the Cocos Plate builds up to much, triggering Earthquakes.
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