International

Magnitude 7.2 earthquake strikes rural Peru

Tremor felt across southern region but remote location limits widespread damage

Map showing the epicentre of the earthquake. (USGS)

21/08/2026 a las 14:41h.

A powerful magnitude 6.7 earthquake has struck a remote rural area in south-western Peru.

Initial data from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) ... placed the epicentre near Aniso - a small village of around 200 residents in the Ayacucho region. The tremor struck 31 kilometres from the town at a depth of 99 kilometres.

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Rossel Aparicio

The nearest major population centre to feel the tremor was Coracora, home to 7,000 people. Although the earthquake was felt lightly in larger cities such as Cusco, the USGS estimated a 94 per cent probability of zero casualties and a 90 per cent chance that property damage would remain below $1million.

Peruvian authorities warned that the quake triggered localised landslides. The National Emergency Operations Centre confirmed the earthquake was felt with moderate to high intensity across several departments, adding that monitoring remains ongoing in vulnerable zones.

Emergency services confirmed the impact is not expected to match the severity of recent seismic disasters in neighbouring South American countries.