A 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck coastal Ecuador on April 16, 2016 with its epicenter located approximately 27 km south-southeast of Muisne. The earthquake was caused by the subduction of the Nazca Plate beneath the South American Plate along the plate boundary where Ecuador sits. Significant damage occurred in coastal towns like Pedernales, where much of the town was leveled. Tremors were felt as far away as Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador's capital Quito. Over 50 aftershocks followed in the first 24 hours.

1. 2016 Ecuador
Earthquake

2. 2016 Ecuador earthquake occurred on April 16 at 18:58:37 ECT with
a moment magnitude of 7.8 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of
VIII (Severe). The very large thrust earthquake was centered
approximately 27 km (17 mi) from the towns
of Muisne andPedernales in a sparsely populated part of the
country, and 170 km (110 mi) from the capital Quito,[1] where it was
felt strongly.

3. Ecuador lies above the destructive plate boundary where the Nazca
Plate is subducting beneath the South American Plate. The convergence rate between
the plates in Ecuador is 61 millimetres (2.4 in) per year. The depth, location and focal
mechanism of the earthquake are all consistent with rupture along the plate interface in
the form of a megathrust earthquake. A major earthquake in 1906 ruptured the plate
interface for at least 400 km immediately northeast of the 2016 event.[1]

4. At 18:58 ECT on April 16, a 7.8 Mw earthquake struck the coast
of Ecuador approximately 27 km (17 mi) south-southeast of Muisne, in
the province of Esmeraldas, at a depth of 19.2 km (11.9 mi).[1] Tremors
were felt in neighboring Colombia and Peru;[10] a clinic in Cali,
Colombia, was evacuated as a precautionary
measure.[11] A tsunami alert was issued by the Pacific Tsunami
Warning Center for Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Fiji, Panama, and
Peru.[10][12][13] This is the largest earthquake to strike Ecuador since
the 1979 Tumaco earthquake.[14] According to Mayor Gabriel Alcivar,
much of the town of Pedernales, about 35 km to the south-southwest of
the earthquake's epicenter, was leveled. In Guayaquil—approximately
300 km (190 mi) from the epicenter—an overpass collapsed on a car,
killing the driver.[11] In Manta the control tower of the airport was
severely damaged;[15] an Air Force officer was injured and the airport
closed.[16] Six homes collapsed and many others lost power in the
nation's capital city of Quito.[17]
The earthquake was presaged by a magnitude 4.8 foreshock eleven
minutes before the main quake struck,[18] and followed by over fifty-
five aftershocks in the first twenty-four hours.[19]