The 2014 Iquique earthquakestruck off the coast of Chile on 1 April, with a moment magnitude of 8.2, at 20:46 local time. The epicenter of the earthquake was approximately northwest of Iquique. The mainshock was preceded by a number of moderate to large shocks and was followed by a large number of moderate to very large aftershocks, including a M7.7 event on 3 April. The megathrust earthquake triggered a tsunami of up to that hit Iquique at 21:05 local time. Similar-sized tsunamis were also reported to have hit the coasts of Pisagua and Arica.
There was a cluster of earthquakes starting from the one occurring on March 16 with a magnitude of 6.7, and a large earthquake had been expected. The 8.2 earthquake was smaller than what was expected, with a rupture of in length instead of the expected rupture. The earthquake was felt in Chile, Peru, and Bolivia. The intensity reached intensity VIII in Iquique, Chile.
Effects
Four men died of heart attacks and one woman was reportedly crushed to death when a wall collapsed. A loader was crushed by a falling metal structure and died of the injuries afterwards. Around 80,000 were displaced by the event. Electricity and water services were interrupted in the regions of Arica y Parinacota and Tarapacá. During the aftermath of the earthquake, 293 prisoners escaped from a women's prison in Iquique when a wall collapsed. Many returned voluntarily a short time later, while Chilean soldiers searched for the rest. provided by the United States Geological Survey According to the Peruvian emergency services, nine people were slightly injured, seven households have been affected, one temple has collapsed and electricity outages in the affected regions of Tacna, Moquegua and Arequipa occurred, which were restored later.
Aftershocks
There were several significant aftershocks above 6.0 magnitude and many more of lower magnitude over subsequent days.
Such large earthquakes can have effects far away other than tsunamis. A megathrust quake can shake the entire earth, but causes stronger movement and strain on the entire associated oceanic plate, beyond the few hundred kilometer rupture zone. Though too far to be an aftershock, a 6.0 quake on a thin protruding wedge of the Nazca Plate was reported off Panama within 12 hours of the main shock.
Tsunamis
Under advice from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, tsunami warnings were issued for the Latin American Pacific coastlines of Chile, Peru, and Ecuador shortly after the earthquake occurred. Chile was subsequently hit by a tsunami of 2.11 m in its northern territories. The tsunami warning was later canceled for all countries except Chile and Peru within a few hours of the earthquake. The tsunami warning was canceled for both Chile and Peru at around 4:58 UTC on 2 April. Hawaii was under a tsunami advisory for over 13 hours. On April 3 local time, tsunamis were observed in Japan. The tsunami reached high in Kuji, Iwate Prefecture, Japan.
