Earthquakes near Puerto Montt through history

The one on December 16, 1575 was the deadliest: NOAA records 1,321 deaths for it. NOAA’s list of significant earthquakes has 5 here, back to 1575. NOAA records deaths in 3 of the events here, 1,364 in all. The latest on NOAA’s list is an earthquake on December 28, 1871 (Puerto Montt). NOAA’s record here begins on December 16, 1575 with an earthquake (Valdivia). 5 of the 5 significant earthquakes NOAA lists here came before 1927. NOAA lists 4 tsunamis that began within 100 km of Puerto Montt, and one from elsewhere that reached it with deaths or a metre of water or more. The highest water NOAA records here was 60 m, on February 19, 1965. The deadliest, on February 19, 1965, killed 27 people here by NOAA’s runup records. NOAA lists 5 significant eruptions of one volcano within 100 km of Puerto Montt. The largest was Calbuco on January 7, 1893, at 4 on the volcanic explosivity index.

• February 19, 1965Tsunami · 60 m hereSouthern Chile · 27 deaths here (NOAA)NOAA NCEI
• January 7, 1893Eruption · VEI 4CalbucoNOAA NCEI · Wikipedia
• December 28, 1871EarthquakePuerto MonttNOAA NCEI
• November 7, 1837Earthquake · M 8.5 (est.)Valdivia · 16 deaths (NOAA)NOAA NCEI
• December 16, 1575Earthquake · M 8.5 (est.)Valdivia · 1,321 deaths (NOAA)NOAA NCEI

• An event counts for Puerto Montt when it began within 100 km of its centre, or 200 km for an earthquake of magnitude 7 or more. Damage can reach further.
• USGS counts here start at magnitude 6: the catalogue’s smaller quakes thin out going back, where few instruments listened.
• NOAA lists significant events only: earthquakes that killed, did about $1 million of damage, reached magnitude 7.5 or intensity X, or raised a tsunami, and eruptions and tsunamis by like measures. Magnitudes before 1900 are its estimates from written accounts.
• Deaths are NOAA’s total for each event, wherever people died, its tsunami and fires included. A tsunami counts the dead its runup records give for this place: NOAA’s total for a tsunami includes its source quake’s.
• A tsunami from elsewhere counts where one of its runups killed or rose a metre or more.
• Counted to October 19, 2026, as is the map. The last 30 days ask USGS again.

How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Earthquakes, live, The world through history