1949 Ambato Earthquake

Date: August 5, 1949 • Location: Puyo, Ecuador

An earthquake registering 6.4 Ms struck near Ambato, Ecuador, killing 5,050 people.

A magnitude 6.4 Ms earthquake struck Ecuador's Tungurahua Province southeast of its capital Ambato and killed 5,050 people on August 5, 1949. The nearby villages of Guano, Patate, Pelileo, and Pillaro were destroyed, and the city of Ambato suffered heavy damage. The earthquake flattened buildings and subsequent landslides caused damage throughout the Tungurahua, Chimborazo, and Cotopaxi Provinces. It disrupted water mains and communication lines and opened a fissure into which the small town of Libertad sank. Moderate shaking from the event extended as far away as Quito and Guayaquil.