The United States Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 5.1 Earthquake at a depth of 35.4 km, in the Cordillera de Mérida mountain range, roughly 25 km to the southwest of the village of Puerto Vivas In Barinas State in northwest Venezuela, at about 4.35 am local time (about 8.35 am GMT) on Saturday 14 October 2017. There are no reports of any damage or casualties associated with this event, but it was felt locally.
The approximate location of the 14 October 2017 Barinas Earthquake. Google Maps.
The Cordillera de Mérida mountains form a northeastern extension of the Andes, running through the northwest of Colombia. The mountains form the boundary between the South American Plate to the south and east and the North Andean Plate, which underlies parts of northern Colombia and northwest Venezuela, to the northwest. The North Andean Plate is caught between the west-moving South American Plate to the east and the east-moving Nazca Plate to the west, with the effect that the whole area is being crushed and uplifted, making it very prone to earthquakes.
The movement of the plates under and around northern South America. WIkimedia Commons.
Witness accounts of Earthquakes can help geologists to understand these events, and the structures that cause them. The international non-profit organisation Earthquake Report is interested in hearing from people who may have felt this event; if you felt this quake then you can report it to Earthquake Report here.
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