World Map › South America › Chile
Country
Map of Chile
South America · Santiago
Chile spans the South American and Scotia plates. It has 71 volcanoes active over the last 10,000 years, 23 of which have erupted since 1900. Since 1900, 116 major earthquakes have been recorded, causing at least 38,610 deaths. Its exposure to natural hazards is 5.5 out of 10 (INFORM index), a high level. Its overall risk index, which accounts for its ability to cope, is 3.1 out of 10.
- Capital
- Santiago
- Population
- 19,458,000
- Area
- 756,102 km²
- Continent
- South America
Tectonic Plates
Natural Hazards
Exposure to natural hazards according to the European Commission's INFORM index, from 0 (very low) to 10 (very high), overall and for each type of hazard.
Overall Risk Index
This overall score combines hazard exposure with the vulnerability of the population (3.9 out of 10) and the lack of coping capacity (2.3 out of 10). A highly exposed but well-prepared country therefore gets a low overall score.
People Exposed Each Year
- 40,901to strong shaking (intensity VI and above)
- 40,436to destructive shaking (intensity VIII and above)
- 696to tsunamis
- 50,670to river floods
- 938to coastal floods
Overall Risk Index Over Time
Hazard Levels
Hazard level assessed by ThinkHazard! (World Bank, GFDRR), meaning the likelihood of a damaging event, from very low to high.
- River FloodHigh
- Urban FloodHigh
- Coastal FloodHigh
- EarthquakeHigh
- LandslideHigh
- TsunamiHigh
- VolcanoHigh
- Water ScarcityHigh
- WildfireHigh
- Extreme HeatMedium
Volcanoes (71)
Volcanoes active over the last 10,000 years; year of the last known eruption.
- Lascar 2026
- Planchón-Peteroa 2025
- Villarrica Volcano 2025
- Copahue 2024
- Nevados de Chillán 2022
- Calbuco 2015
- Puyehue-Cordón Caulle 2012
- Chaitén 2011
- Cerro Hudson 2011
- Llaima 2009
- Lonquimay 1990
- Callaqui 1980
- Carrán-Los Venados 1979
- Lautaro 1979
- Cerro Azul 1967
- Guallatiri 1960
- Mocho-Choshuenco 1937
- Descabezado Grande 1933
- Volcán Huequi 1920
- Tinguiririca Volcano 1917
- Isluga 1913
- Monte Burney 1910
- Reclus 1908
- Antuco 1869
- Osorno 1869
- Puntiagudo-Cordón Cenizos 1850
- Michinmahuida 1835
- Fueguino 1820
- Mentolat 1710
- Maca 1560
Major Earthquakes Since 1900
Earthquakes that caused deaths or significant damage, or of magnitude 7.5 and above (NOAA).
Deadliest
- 1939Chillan · M 8.330,000 deaths
- 1906South Central · M 8.24,000 deaths
- 1960Puerto Montt, Valdivia · M 9.52,226 deaths
- 1922Atacama · M 8.5700 deaths
- 2010Maule, Concepcion, Talcahuano · M 8.8558 deaths
- 1965Central · M 7.3400 deaths
Regions
Regions with volcanoes, major earthquakes, tsunamis, cyclones or famous faults.
Tsunamis
45 major tsunamis have reached Chile since 1900, killing 2,826 people in the country. The deadliest and highest are listed below.
- 1960Tsunami (Chile) · 25.0 m2,333 deaths
- 2010Tsunami (Chile) · 29.0 m229 deaths
- 1922Tsunami (Chile) · 5.5 m220 deaths
- 1965Tsunami (Chile) · 60.0 m27 deaths
- 2007Tsunami (Chile) · 50.0 m8 deaths
- 2015Tsunami (Chile) · 13.6 m8 deaths
- 1955Tsunami (Chile) · 1.0 m1 deaths
- 1946Tsunami (United States of America) · 8.6 m
Sources : Natural Earth · Wikidata · INFORM Risk Index (1 September 2026 v 0.7.3), Commission européenne, CC BY 4.0 · NOAA NCEI · ThinkHazard!, GFDRR, CC BY · Bird (2003), PB2002 · Global Volcanism Program, Smithsonian Institution