El Salvador

Interesting Facts About El Salvador

• El Salvador lies along the Pacific Ring of Fire and experiences frequent earthquakes and volcanic activity
• The capital San Salvador was destroyed twice, in 1756 and 1854, and suffered heavy damage in several 20th-century earthquakes
• A magnitude 7.7 earthquake on 13 January 2001 caused a landslide that killed more than 800 people
• El Salvador has over twenty volcanoes, including San Miguel and Izalco which have been active in recent years
• Izalco volcano earned the name 'Lighthouse of the Pacific' from the early 19th century to the mid-1950s due to its regular eruptions and brilliant night-time glow
• The Santa Ana Volcano erupted on 1 October 2005, spewing ash, hot mud and rocks that caused two deaths in nearby villages
• In the 5th century AD, the Ilopango volcano erupted with VEI strength 6, producing pyroclastic flows that devastated Mayan cities

View San Salvador guide