Caribbean Earthquakes – Current Map & Latest Seismic Activity

The Caribbean is one of the most complex earthquake regions in the world. It includes island arcs, offshore trenches, strike-slip faults, volcanic zones, and deep plate-boundary structures. Earthquakes here can affect Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Hispaniola, Jamaica, Cuba, the Cayman region, the Lesser Antilles, Trinidad and Tobago, and nearby coastal areas of Central and South America.

Current Caribbean Earthquake Map

This page tracks the latest Caribbean earthquake activity using live map data and statistics from USGS, filtered for the Caribbean region. The map and stats update automatically each time the page loads or refreshes.

Each colored circle marks an earthquake location — click one to see its magnitude, location, time, and depth. Use the time filter buttons to switch between the last hour, 24 hours, 7 days, or 30 days. For broader context, compare this with the latest worldwide earthquake list to see how Caribbean activity fits into global patterns.

Caribbean earthquakes (map loads with JavaScript)

Regional Coverage Notice: Our earthquake monitoring regions are designed for comprehensive global coverage. Some border areas may appear in multiple regional views to ensure no seismic activity is missed. This overlap is intentional and follows best practices in earthquake monitoring.

About Caribbean Earthquakes

The Caribbean sits within a complex plate-boundary zone where the Caribbean Plate interacts with the North American Plate to the north and the South American Plate to the south. Around Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and eastern Hispaniola, USGS describes the Caribbean Plate as moving eastward at about 2 cm per year relative to the North American Plate. Source: USGS Caribbean Tsunami and Earthquake Hazards Studies

This boundary is not one simple fault. Some parts of the Caribbean plate boundary move mainly sideways through strike-slip faulting, while other areas involve subduction, offshore trenches, island arcs, volcanic systems, and deep underwater basins. That is why Caribbean earthquakes can vary sharply in depth, size, fault type, and tsunami potential from one area to another. Sources: USGS Significant Earthquakes in the Northeastern Caribbean and USGS Lesser Antilles subduction-zone study

Earthquake risk is not spread evenly across the region. Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands sit near active offshore fault zones and the Puerto Rico Trench. Hispaniola, Jamaica, eastern Cuba, and the Cayman region are influenced by major strike-slip fault systems. The eastern Caribbean islands are influenced by the Lesser Antilles subduction zone and volcanic arc. Sources: UWI Seismic Research Centre

Major Earthquake Zones in the Caribbean

• Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands: Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands sit near a highly active northeastern Caribbean plate-boundary zone. The Puerto Rico Seismic Network provides earthquake catalogues, significant earthquake information, felt-earthquake reports, tsunami-program resources, and evacuation-map links for Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Source: Puerto Rico Seismic Network
• Puerto Rico Trench: The Puerto Rico Trench lies north of Puerto Rico and Hispaniola. USGS describes this area as part of the active boundary between the Caribbean Plate and North American Plate, where plate motion includes strike-slip movement and a smaller component of subduction. Source: USGS Caribbean Tsunami and Earthquake Hazards Studies
• Muertos Trough: South of Puerto Rico and Hispaniola, the Muertos Trough forms part of the complex northeastern Caribbean plate-boundary system. This offshore zone matters because earthquakes, seafloor deformation, and submarine slope failures can contribute to shaking and tsunami hazard around Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and nearby waters. Source: Puerto Rico Seismic Network
• Septentrional–Oriente Fault Zone: This northern Caribbean strike-slip fault system affects northern Hispaniola and extends toward eastern Cuba. USGS research identifies the Septentrional fault system as one of the major seismic sources in Hispaniola.
• Enriquillo–Plantain Garden Fault Zone: This major left-lateral strike-slip fault system affects Jamaica, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. Jamaica, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic straddle this major plate-boundary zone between the Caribbean and North American plates. Source: USGS Enriquillo–Plantain Garden fault zone study
• Cayman Trough and western Caribbean: The Cayman region includes deep seafloor basins and strike-slip transform faults between Cuba, Jamaica, Honduras, and the Cayman Islands. Earthquakes in this area can be strong even when epicentres are offshore, as shown by the February 2025 Cayman Islands region earthquake. Source: MDPI
• Lesser Antilles Subduction Zone: Along the eastern Caribbean, oceanic lithosphere descends beneath the Lesser Antilles island arc. A USGS study on the Lesser Antilles subduction zone examined potential earthquake and tsunami hazards, including scenario earthquakes in the M7.5 to M8.5 range. 
• Trinidad, Tobago, and the southern Caribbean: The southern Caribbean is influenced by the interaction of the Caribbean and South American plates. Earthquakes in this region can involve strike-slip, compressional, and offshore faulting, with hazards extending across Trinidad and Tobago, the southern Lesser Antilles, Venezuela, and nearby waters. Source: UWI Seismic Research Centre

The Main Types of Caribbean Earthquakes

Caribbean earthquake activity is easier to understand when grouped into three main types: strike-slip plate-boundary earthquakes, subduction-related earthquakes, and volcanic or island-arc earthquakes.

Strike-Slip Plate-Boundary Earthquakes

Strike-slip earthquakes happen when blocks of crust move mostly sideways past each other. This type of motion is important around Hispaniola, Jamaica, eastern Cuba, and the Cayman region. The Enriquillo–Plantain Garden and Septentrional fault systems are two of the most important strike-slip systems for Caribbean earthquake hazard.

Shallow strike-slip earthquakes can be exceptionally devastating when they rupture close to densely populated urban areas. According to USGS research on the Enriquillo–Plantain Garden Fault Zone, this specific fault system is historically responsible for the catastrophic destruction of Kingston, Jamaica (in 1692 and 1907) and Port-au-Prince, Haiti (in 1751 and 1770).

Subduction and Offshore Earthquakes

Subduction-related earthquakes happen where one plate moves beneath another. In the Caribbean, this is most important near the Puerto Rico Trench and the Lesser Antilles subduction zone. Offshore earthquakes can also raise tsunami concerns if they move the seafloor, trigger submarine landslides, or occur near steep underwater slopes. Source: USGS Lesser Antilles subduction-zone study

The Caribbean has several possible tsunami sources, including offshore earthquakes, submarine landslides, volcanic activity, and distant tsunami sources. Because many Caribbean communities and tourism areas sit close to the coast, tsunami awareness is an important part of earthquake preparedness. Sources: NOAA/NCEI Natural Hazards Database and NOAA/National Weather Service Tsunami Safety

Volcanic and Island-Arc Earthquakes

The eastern Caribbean includes active volcanic islands along the Lesser Antilles arc. Small earthquakes and earthquake swarms can happen near volcanic systems as rock, fluids, gases, or magma move underground. These earthquakes do not automatically mean an eruption is coming, but changes in earthquake patterns are one of the signals scientists watch closely.

The UWI Seismic Research Centre is the official source of information on earthquakes and volcanoes in the English-speaking Eastern Caribbean. It provides regional earthquake, volcano, and tsunami information for islands across the eastern Caribbean.

Seismically Active Caribbean Areas

Some parts of the Caribbean experience more earthquake activity because they sit close to active plate boundaries, trenches, transform faults, or volcanic arcs.

• Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands: Earthquakes occur around southwest Puerto Rico, the Puerto Rico Trench, the Mona Passage, and offshore zones near the Virgin Islands. PRSN provides earthquake catalogues, felt-earthquake information, significant earthquake resources, tsunami-program links, and evacuation-map resources for the area.
• Hispaniola: Haiti and the Dominican Republic are crossed by major active fault systems, including the Enriquillo–Plantain Garden and Septentrional systems. USGS research identifies damaging historical earthquakes on these systems and warns that the Enriquillo fault system remains seismically active. Source: USGS Significant Earthquakes in the Northeastern Caribbean
• Jamaica: Jamaica lies along the Enriquillo–Plantain Garden fault zone and has a long history of damaging earthquakes. A USGS-published study notes that past large earthquakes destroyed Kingston in both 1692 and 1907.
• Cuba and the Cayman region: Southeastern Cuba and the Cayman Trough region are influenced by strike-slip motion along the northern Caribbean plate boundary. Offshore earthquakes in this area can be widely felt across nearby islands and coastal areas.
• Lesser Antilles: Islands from the Virgin Islands and Anguilla southward toward Guadeloupe, Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent, Grenada, Barbados, and Trinidad and Tobago are influenced by subduction and island-arc tectonics. This setting can produce shallow crustal earthquakes, deeper subduction-related earthquakes, volcanic hazards, and tsunami risk. Sources: USGS Lesser Antilles subduction-zone study.
• Central America and northern South America margins: Earthquakes near Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Colombia, and Venezuela can sometimes fall within broader Caribbean monitoring regions because the Caribbean Plate boundary extends beyond the island arc.

Earthquake and Tsunami Risk in the Caribbean

The Caribbean’s earthquake risk comes from several different tectonic settings rather than one single fault. Strike-slip fault zones can produce shallow, damaging earthquakes close to populated areas, while subduction-related earthquakes can occur offshore or at greater depths. In some cases, strong offshore earthquakes can also generate tsunamis.

Tsunami hazard is especially important because many Caribbean towns, cities, roads, ports, airports, hotels, and power facilities are located close to the coast. NOAA/NCEI maintains historical tsunami records, including Caribbean tsunami events, while NOAA/NWS provides tsunami safety guidance for coastal communities.

Strong shaking is not the only earthquake hazard in the Caribbean. Steep mountain slopes can be vulnerable to landslides, low-lying coastal areas may face liquefaction or tsunami flooding, and soft sediments can amplify shaking in some basins and coastal plains. Because many islands depend on ports, airports, coastal roads, bridges, power plants, water systems, and tourism infrastructure, even a moderate earthquake can cause disruption beyond the area closest to the epicentre.

Historical and Recent Major Earthquakes in the Caribbean

The Caribbean has a long history of damaging earthquakes. Older events often have uncertain magnitudes because they happened before modern instruments, but they are still important for understanding regional hazard patterns.

• 1692 Jamaica earthquake: A highly destructive earthquake devastated Port Royal and the Kingston area. A USGS-published study on the Enriquillo–Plantain Garden Fault explicitly notes that this disaster highlights Jamaica’s long-running seismic risk along the northern Caribbean plate-boundary zone.
  
• 1751 Hispaniola earthquakes: The USGS Significant Earthquakes report details a violent sequence of earthquakes on the Enriquillo fault system, starting with an October 18, 1751 event (estimated at M7.4 to 7.5) and followed by a severe November 21, 1751 event near Port-au-Prince.
  
• 1770 Haiti earthquake: Historical reconstructions by the USGS Enriquillo Tectonic Catalog classify the June 3, 1770 Haiti earthquake as an estimated M7.5 event that ruptured just west of the eventual 2010 Haiti earthquake epicenter.
  
• 1843 Lesser Antilles earthquake: The USGS Northeast Caribbean Database identifies the massive April 5, 1843 earthquake as a significant historical intra-arc event, which remains the strongest recorded shaking in the northern Lesser Antilles.
  
• 1867 Virgin Islands earthquake and tsunami: This event stands as one of the most critical historical tsunamis in the northeastern Caribbean. It is fully cataloged in the NOAA/NCEI Natural Hazards Database due to its widespread regional impacts.
  
• 1907 Kingston, Jamaica earthquake: A major earthquake caused severe structural damage and loss of life across Kingston. The USGS Enriquillo-Plantain Garden Fault Study frequently cites both the 1692 and 1907 events to demonstrate the recurring threat to Jamaica’s capital.
  
• 1918 Puerto Rico earthquake and tsunami: This devastating event heavily affected northwestern Puerto Rico and serves as the baseline historical scenario for the region’s modern tsunami evacuation planning (NOAA/NCEI Historical Hazards).
  
• 1946 Dominican Republic earthquake and tsunami: Generating a deadly tsunami that struck northeastern Hispaniola, this event is recorded by the NOAA/NCEI Tsunami Event Portal as a benchmark 20th-century disaster.
  
• 2010 Haiti earthquake (M7.0): Occurring on January 12, 2010, close to Port-au-Prince, this event is one of the most devastating modern earthquakes on record. It demonstrated how vulnerable dense urban infrastructure is to shallow-depth ruptures.
  
• 2020 Southwest Puerto Rico earthquake sequence: This damaging seismic sequence included a M6.4 mainshock on January 7, 2020. The Puerto Rico Seismic Network handled local tracking, while the USGS Reviewed Event Page provides detailed finite slip and multi-fault geometry analyses.
  
• 2021 Haiti earthquake (M7.2): Striking the Nippes region of southwestern Haiti on August 14, 2021, this major modern event reconfirmed that western Hispaniola remains a highly active earthquake-risk zone.
  
• 2025 Cayman Islands region earthquake (M7.6): Occurring on February 8, 2025, south-southwest of George Town, this powerful event emphasizes the ongoing tectonic activity along the western Caribbean strike-slip transform systems.

Not Every Caribbean Earthquake Is the Same

Because the Caribbean has several different earthquake sources, it is important not to treat every earthquake as the same type of event.

A shallow earthquake in Haiti or Jamaica may be related to strike-slip faulting. An earthquake near Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands may be linked to offshore structures near the Puerto Rico Trench, Mona Passage, Anegada Trough, or other nearby fault zones. A swarm near an eastern Caribbean volcano may be related to volcanic or hydrothermal activity. An offshore earthquake near the Lesser Antilles may involve subduction-zone or island-arc movement. Sources: USGS Enriquillo–Plantain Garden fault zone study, Puerto Rico Seismic Network, and UWI Seismic Research Centre

Location, depth, magnitude, and fault type all matter. A smaller shallow earthquake close to a town can be more strongly felt than a larger, deeper earthquake farther offshore. A large offshore earthquake creates a different concern because it may also raise tsunami questions for nearby coastlines.

The main takeaway is simple: Caribbean earthquake risk comes from several sources, so local context matters.

Earthquake Preparedness in the Caribbean

Caribbean earthquake preparedness should include both shaking and tsunami safety. Many people live, work, travel, or stay close to the coast, so knowing what to do before an earthquake happens is important. NOAA/NWS tsunami safety guidance notes that tsunamis can strike any ocean coast and that safety actions before, during, and after a tsunami can save lives. Source: NOAA/National Weather Service Tsunami Safety

Caribbean Earthquake Safety Checklist

• Know “Drop, Cover, and Hold On” for earthquake shaking. Source: Great ShakeOut earthquake safety guidance
• Keep emergency water, food, medications, flashlights, batteries, first-aid supplies, and copies of important documents.
• Secure heavy furniture, appliances, shelves, water tanks, and objects that could fall during shaking.
• Know whether your home, school, hotel, workplace, or beach area is in a tsunami evacuation zone.
• If you are near the coast and feel strong or long shaking, move to higher ground or inland after the shaking stops. Source: NOAA/National Weather Service Tsunami Safety
• Use official local alerts and emergency instructions for your island or territory.
• Have an out-of-area emergency contact and a family communication plan.
• Visitors should check local evacuation signs and hotel safety information, especially in coastal areas.

Caribbean Earthquake Monitoring Networks

Earthquake monitoring in the Caribbean is shared across international, regional, and local scientific networks. These agencies help locate earthquakes, issue event information, support tsunami warning systems, and improve understanding of regional earthquake and tsunami hazards.

• USGS Earthquake Hazards Program: Provides global earthquake information, including Caribbean earthquake locations, magnitudes, depths, and event updates. Source: USGS Earthquake Hazards Program
• Puerto Rico Seismic Network: Provides earthquake catalogues, significant earthquake information, felt-earthquake resources, tsunami-program information, and evacuation-map links for Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Source: Puerto Rico Seismic Network
• UWI Seismic Research Centre: The official source of information on earthquakes and volcanoes in the English-speaking Eastern Caribbean. Source: UWI Seismic Research Centre
• NOAA/NCEI Natural Hazards Database: Provides historical earthquake and tsunami records, including Caribbean events used for long-term hazard awareness. Source: NOAA/NCEI Natural Hazards Database
• NOAA/NWS tsunami safety resources: Provide tsunami safety guidance for coastal communities and visitors. Source: NOAA/National Weather Service Tsunami Safety

🗺️ Related Maps

View broader region: North America Earthquakes

View nearby regions: United States Earthquakes | North America Earthquakes

View Caribbean subregions: Puerto Rico | Trinidad and Tobago

You can also view the latest available worldwide earthquake list.