The event was felt over a large area of northeastern Brazil, including the cities of Natal and Mossoró.

Widespread damage to buildings at João Câmara occurred and thousands of people were displaced.

The one the João Câmara earthquake is involved with is the Borborema Province, a structurally complex wide exposure of Precambrian rocks that cover an area of roughly 400,000 square kilometres (150,000 sq mi) in northeastern Brazil.

On 10 March 1989, the sequence got reignited when a Mm 5.0 struck near the first mainshock, causing additional minor damage at João Câmara.

Six years earlier, a mb 5.2 earthquake had also struck nearby, in Ceará;[12] hence why the northeast of Brazil is considered to be the most seismically active region of the country.

More than 4,000 homes were destroyed or damaged; 500 of those were rebuilt using a typical design made by the Brazilian Army, which consists of timber panels with concrete infill.

Multiple buildings other than homes made of brick or stone suffered extensive amounts of cracks.

[2] José Sarney, the president of Brazil, as well as several other ministers, visited the area which was hit by the earthquake.