Where the earthquake of Granada has been felt: map of the affected areas

In Andalusia, according to the consulted documentation, there is no exclusive regional special plan for earthquakes, but the response to seismic events is framed within the Territorial Emergency Plan for Civil Protection of Andalusia (PTEAnd), the Law 2/2002, on Emergency Management in Andalusia, the Local Civil Protection System, and, for coordination with the State, the State Civil Protection Plan for Seismic Risk. Based on this, the protocols of 112, Civil Protection, EPES‑061/Health Emergency Center 061, and firefighters are articulated.

1. General organizational framework

• The PTEAnd, approved by Decree 69/2024 and corrected by the Error Correction of 4/9/2024, is the master plan for all civil protection emergencies in Andalusia. It defines operational groups (health, fire-rescue, security, logistical support, etc.) and the operational situations 0, 1, and 2.
• This correction explicitly integrates the Health Emergency Center 061 of the SAS into the Health Group, alongside the rest of the public health system.
• The Local Civil Protection System, regulated by Decree 197/2024, establishes the role of municipalities and Local Civil Protection Volunteer Groups within the municipal operational groups that support the Junta, 112, 061, and firefighters.
• At the state level, the State Civil Protection Plan for Seismic Risk regulates coordination between Autonomous Communities and the State when the earthquake reaches national interest.

2. Phases and emergency situations

Although official examples mainly refer to floods or blackouts, the activation scheme is common to other risks (including earthquakes):

• Pre-emergency phase – operational situation 0: monitoring the phenomenon and forecasts, informing authorities and the population. It is activated when there is risk or repeated incidents, without significant damage. 112 itself describes this phase as focused on monitoring and information dissemination.
• Emergency phase – operational situation 1: the plan is activated because there are already damages or effects on people or property. The Junta defines it as emergencies controllable with ordinary regional resources, with possible occasional external support.
• Operational situation 2: reserved for more serious or complex emergencies (general blackouts, large fires, etc.), when reinforced coordination is necessary and may involve the Military Emergency Unit and state or European mechanisms.

In earthquakes of low or moderate magnitude (around 3–4) without damage, such as the 3.6 quake in Armilla or the 4.1 in Cazalla de la Sierra, recent experience shows that normally the response does not go beyond ordinary management and the information phase.

3. What each service does in an earthquake of this magnitude

112 Andalusia / EMA 1‑1‑2

• Acts as the single call and coordination center. In the 3.6 quake in Armilla, it managed 44 calls within minutes, according to the official note.
• Receives calls, confirms information with the National Geographic Institute, and classifies the incident (only perception, or presence of damage/victims).
• If there is only a felt tremor without damage, limits the response to information and self-protection advice, referring to the Didactic Guide to Earthquakes.
• If damage or injuries are reported, activates firefighters, 061, local police, and Civil Guard, and if necessary proposes activation of the PTEAnd at the corresponding situation.

EPES‑061 / Health Emergency Center

• Integrated into the Health Group of the PTEAnd, with functions of urgent health care and victim triage.
• In the event of a moderate quake without confirmed damage, maintains alert devices and reinforces response capacity, as has been done in other incidents (for example, with advanced health posts in railway accidents).
• If there were injured or collapsed structures, could set up Advanced Health Posts and coordinate triage and hospital evacuation.

Firefighters, Civil Protection, and police

• The firefighter corps carry out basic structural assessments, rescue in damaged buildings, and control of fires, gas, or hazardous substances; they are integrated into the PTEAnd intervention group and municipal plans.
• The Local Civil Protection Volunteer Groups, regulated by Decree 197/2024, support in evacuations, informing the population, shelter logistics, and assistance to vulnerable groups.
• Local Police, National Police, and Civil Guard handle traffic cuts, security perimeters, protection of risk areas, and support for preventive evacuations.

4. Practical response to a recent moderate earthquake

The 112 notes on the earthquakes of Armilla (3.6) and Cazalla de la Sierra (4.1) show a pattern:

• Reception of dozens of calls within minutes from several municipalities.
• Data confirmation with the IGN.
• Verification of the absence of personal or material damage.
• Dissemination of self-protection recommendations: stay calm, remain where you are during the tremor, take shelter under strong structures, do not use elevators, stay away from cornices and cables outside, visually check gas, water, and electricity afterward, and call 112 only if there are injuries or significant damage.

Only if the scenario evolves towards collapses, multiple injuries, or widespread infrastructure impact would the PTEAnd be formally activated in situation 1 or 2, with Advanced Command Posts, possible use of ES‑Alert for mass warnings, and, in extreme cases, requests for state and international support according to Law 17/2015 and the State Plan for Seismic Risk.

The Junta de Andalucía has very broad powers in civil protection and, within it, in the management of seismic emergencies. The Statute of Autonomy amended by LO 2/2007 (art. 66.1, cited in Andalusian Law 2/2023) grants the Autonomous Community exclusive competence in civil protection, which includes regulation, planning, and implementation of measures in emergencies and civil safety, as well as the direction and coordination of civil protection services, respecting state powers in public security.

Basic Andalusian regulatory framework

Based on this statutory framework, the Law 2/2002, on Emergency Management in Andalusia is articulated, amended by Law 2/2023. According to its purpose, the Junta regulates the management of all emergencies in Andalusian territory, including those derived from earthquakes, except those declared of national interest.

Law 2/2002 defines emergency management as the set of actions aimed at protecting life, the integrity of people, and property in situations of serious risk, catastrophe, or public calamity, and also in non-catastrophic emergencies requiring special coordination measures. To this end, it imposes on Andalusian public administrations the creation of an integrated system that ensures:

• Coordination, direction, and control of necessary actions.
• Collaboration among the Junta, provincial councils, municipalities, and, where appropriate, private entities.
• Preparation of risk maps for each geographic area, including seismic hazard.
• Prevention, inspection, and sanction to reduce risks.
• Planning and approval of emergency plans and operational protocols.
• Intervention and rehabilitation measures after the emergency.
• Training and information to the population about risks and self-protection behaviors.

Specific powers of the Junta in seismic emergencies

Applying this general framework to seismic risk, and in connection with the State Law 17/2015, of the National Civil Protection System and the State Civil Protection Plan for Seismic Risk (approved by Council of Ministers Agreement of 3/26/2010), the specific powers of the Junta can be grouped as follows:

1. Planning and prevention

• Develop and approve the regional civil protection planning, in particular:
  • The Territorial Emergency Plan for Civil Protection of Andalusia (PTEAnd), approved by Decree 69/2024 (referenced in the error correction of 4/9/2024), which establishes the general response organization of the Community to serious emergencies, including seismic ones.
  • The regional special plans for specific risks required by the Basic Standard and the Basic Seismic Risk Guideline. Andalusia must have a special plan against seismic risk, consistent with the State Plan and local plans.
• Develop risk maps within Andalusia (competence assigned to the Ministry responsible for civil protection by Law 2/2002), using data from administrations and operators to identify zones of higher seismic hazard and conditioning, where appropriate, land use and building regulations.
• Promote risk reduction policies (structural and non-structural prevention): inspection and control of activities that may worsen earthquake effects, regulation of self-protection measures in critical infrastructures, etc.

2. Operational direction and coordination

• In seismic emergencies that are not of national interest, the Junta assumes direction of the emergency at the regional level, through the bodies and centers provided in the PTEAnd (Emergency Coordination Center, 112, operational groups, etc.).
• Coordinate the civil protection services involved: health services, firefighters, security forces and bodies at the regional level or assigned, civil protection volunteers, etc., establishing common activation, communication, and command procedures.
• Organize and direct specialized regional resources in emergencies, including those of the Agency for Security and Comprehensive Emergency Management of Andalusia (whose statutes are approved by Decree 270/2024) and other specialized services (INFOCA, GREA, etc.), when appropriate.
• Integrate into the National Civil Protection System provided in Law 17/2015, activating cooperation and mutual support mechanisms with the State and other communities, especially when the earthquake may require state reinforcements (UME, state bodies, etc.).

3. Information to the population and participation

• Guarantee the citizens' right to be informed about risks that may affect them, possible consequences of an earthquake, and self-protection measures and behaviors to follow, in accordance with Law 2/2002 and Law 17/2015.
• Order that media outlets transmit, as a priority and free of charge, civil protection warnings, instructions, and orders in the event of an earthquake, always indicating the issuing authority.
• Promote training and participation through civil protection volunteering and awareness campaigns and specific seismic risk drills.

4. Relationship with the State and municipalities

• Coordinate with municipalities, which develop and implement their own local emergency response plans for seismic emergencies, integrated into regional planning.
• Collaborate with the General State Administration: Law 17/2015 and the State Seismic Risk Plan foresee that if the emergency is declared of national interest, direction passes to the State, but the Junta maintains management of its services and resources under state coordination and receives additional support (for example, UME, specialized state resources).

In summary, the Junta de Andalucía holds the main responsibility for prevention, planning, direction, coordination, and information in civil protection against earthquakes within its territory, while integrating into the National Civil Protection System and respecting state competence when the emergency acquires national interest.

With the information available from the consulted sources, it is not possible to provide a reliable and definitive figure for the number of earthquakes of similar magnitude to the recent seismic event recorded in Andalusia in the last decade. Neither the Junta de Andalucía nor the National Geographic Institute (IGN) publish, in the reviewed documents, a pre-made numerical summary for a specific magnitude range and only for Andalusia; that figure can only be obtained by directly consulting the IGN seismic catalog and manually filtering the data.

What is known about recent earthquakes in Andalusia

In recent weeks, several statements and news about earthquakes in Andalusia have been disseminated that help contextualize the question:

• The press has reported a magnitude 3.6 earthquake recorded in the province of Almería, with epicenter in Antas, according to the National Geographic Institute; this quake was felt in several municipalities of eastern Almería and it is recalled that the province accumulates “several earthquakes of magnitude greater than 3” in recent years, as well as a magnitude 5.3 earthquake in 2025, also according to the IGN.
• The Andalusian Emergency Agency (EMA 1‑1‑2) has recently described another magnitude 3.6 earthquake with epicenter in Armilla (Granada), which generated dozens of calls but no personal injuries. That note emphasizes that these moderate magnitude earthquakes are expected phenomena in seismically active areas of the community.
• Other official communications mention seismic series in Málaga and Cádiz and multiple small earthquakes around the Alboran Sea, always referring to low or moderate magnitudes (around 3) and without serious consequences.

All this confirms that in Andalusia earthquakes of similar magnitude (around 3–4) on the scale used by the IGN occur with some frequency, but the journalistic and emergency documents consulted limit themselves to citing specific cases and recalling that the IGN historical record includes numerous events, without translating it into a numerical total for the last decade.

Why a direct figure for the last decade does not appear

The reviewed sources always refer to the IGN seismic catalog as the official record of all earthquakes detected in Spain and nearby areas. This catalog:

• Records each quake with date, location, depth, and magnitude.
• Allows downloading data or consulting them through specific IGN applications.
• Does not offer, in the reviewed texts, a pre-calculated summary like “number of earthquakes of magnitude ≥3 in Andalusia between 2016 and 2026.”

In fact, an article from the National Geographic Information Center about geographic data applications explicitly mentions the tool “IGN Earthquakes”, intended to consult and visualize these records, but again without providing a numerical balance by autonomous community or decade. The recurring message is that data are openly available and users can exploit them, but the count depends on how exactly the scope (Andalusia versus the entire southern peninsula) and magnitude threshold are defined.

How to obtain the exact number from the IGN catalog

Since the figure is not already provided in the consulted documents, the only precise way to answer “how many earthquakes of similar magnitude” have been recorded in the last decade is:

• Access the IGN seismic catalog (available from IGN pages or from CNIG geographic data applications, described in this information about CNIG applications).
• Define the time interval of interest: for example, from 08/15/2016 to 08/15/2026.
• Limit the geographic scope to Andalusia (either using territorial filters if available or delimiting a spatial window covering Andalusian territory).
• Set the magnitude range considered “similar” to the reference quake (for example, from 3.0 to 4.0 if taking a 3.6 magnitude earthquake as reference) and run the query.
• Download the result (usually in table format) and count the returned records to obtain the exact number of earthquakes in that magnitude range and period.

What can be concluded with the available information

From the notes of the Junta de Andalucía and articles about seismicity in Spain, several general ideas can be drawn:

• The southern and southeastern peninsula (including much of Andalusia) is one of the Spanish areas with most frequent seismic activity.
• Moderate magnitude earthquakes (around 3–4), like those in Antas or Armilla, are regularly recorded, and occasionally larger earthquakes, such as the magnitude 5.3 off the coast of Almería in 2025.
• Most of these events do not cause significant damage and are managed as incidents without serious consequences by emergency services.

However, without directly exploiting the IGN seismic catalog, it is not possible to rigorously provide a concrete number of earthquakes of similar magnitude in the last decade. Any figure offered without that detailed count would be an estimate not supported by the reviewed official sources.