Residents of the city of São Paulo said they felt an earthquake on Thursday night (18). The seismic shock was confirmed by the Civil Defense of the State of São Paulo, which reported “slight tremors in different regions of the capital of São Paulo”.
The phenomenon is a reflection of the earthquake that occurred in the northern region of Chile and Argentina on Thursday. The Civil Defense confirmed the relationship according to data from the Seismology Center of USP (University of São Paulo).
“Experts also point out that the tremors felt in the city of São Paulo are of low intensity and present minimal risk of damage. So far, there is no record of victims or occurrences related to the event. The State Civil Defense continues to monitor the situation,” the Civil Defense said in a statement.
A strong earthquake of magnitude 7.3 shook northern Chile around 10:50 pm (Brasília time). The epicenter of the earthquake occurred in the Antofagasta region, near the Atacama Desert, near the borders with Bolivia and Argentina.
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the tremor was recorded at a depth of 126 km. The central point of the earthquake was located 20 km south of the city of San Pedro de Atacama, in the Antofagasta region, about 1,630 km from the capital Santiago.
Reports in São Paulo
Netizens went to social networks to report the tremor felt in São Paulo.
“Did everyone in São Paulo feel the earthquake too?” asked a user on X.
“I felt the earthquake in São Paulo. And what a horrible feeling. My head was shaking for a while afterwards,” said a third of them.
In the Mooca neighborhood, some residents of a building came down from the building and sought refuge in the streets.
Mooca//SP
Earthquake pic.twitter.com/VXCycKjqZM— Products Support (@SupportProduct_) July 19, 2024
>IS THERE AN EARTHQUAKE IN SP OR AM I CRAZY? pic.twitter.com/CDdehqdm58— Gori (p) (@ngmouro) July 19, 2024
Despite not being positioned on the edges of tectonic plates, Brazil also has seismic shocks, but with different characteristics from those that occur in the United States and Japan, for example. Several tremors with a magnitude above 5.0 on the Richter Scale have been recorded throughout the country’s history.
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