On Friday Afternoon a Shallow M6.4 Earthquake struck in the Java Sea 159km from Surabaya (Indonesia).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on March 22nd, 2024. Last updated May 19th, 2024.

In the Java Sea 159 kilometer from Surabaya, Indonesia, a shallow and strong Magnitude 6.4 earthquake occurred in the afternoon of Friday March 22nd, 2024. Earthquakes like this can cause significant economic damage and have a significant risk at casualties.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Java Sea, 25 kilometers (16 mi) off the coast of Indonesia, 159 kilometer north-northwest of Surabaya in East Java. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 9 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Mar 22, 2024 15:52 (Jakarta Time) - Mar 22, 2024 08:52 Universal Time.
Location:	159 km NNW of Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia. Coordinates 5°52'32"S 112°21'58"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 6.4 Detected by 65 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.038 .
Depth:	9 km (6 mi) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	VIII Severe On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Low tsunami risk Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 do not usually cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Significant impact predicted

The US Geographic Survey (USGS) describes the impact of this earthquake as follows:

Five persons injured, 774 homes destoyred, 4982 buildings damaged in the Bawean-Surabaya-Tuban region.

Based on scientific estimates by the USGS, the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level YELLOW (significant). They expect an 50% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities, and a 99% chance that the number of fatalities falls no higher than 100.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level YELLOW (significant). They expect an 48% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 99% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls no higher than 100 million USD.

Roughly 33 million people exposed to shaking

An estimated 33 million have been exposed to shaking (An MMI or Modified Mercalli Intensity level II or higher) as a result of this earthquake according scientific estimates published by the USGS.

Severe shaking and likely moderate to heavy damage may have been experienced by an estimated 1,690 people. At VIII, it is the highest MMI level this earthquake has caused. Intensity level IV was experienced by the majority of people (around 29 million). In their region, light shaking and likely no damage can be expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Indonesia .

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Indonesia . Located 111 kilometer (69 mi) north of the epicenter of this earthquake, Paciran (East Java, Indonesia) is the nearest significant population center. The intensity of shaking and damage in Paciran is estimated to be around level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (light shaking, likely no damage).

Major cities near this earthquake: Surabaya is located 159 km to the south-southeast and experienced an intensity of V (moderate shaking, very light damage). Semarang is located 248 km to the west-southwest (intensity unknown, possibly low). Malang is located 236 km to the south (intensity unknown, possibly low).

A complete list of nearby places is included below. Estimated intensity data (MMI) sourced from a shake-map published by the US Geographic Survey is shown where available (cities without data probably experienced little impact).

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The graph below overlays a map of the region around the epicenter with earthquake intensity data provided by the US Geographic Survey. The highest intensity level detected for this earthquake is VIII.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Shaking reported by 97 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 97 people have reported shaking in 40 places, all within Indonesia.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Surabaya, Jawa Timur, Indonesia: 30 people.
• Gedangan, Jawa Timur, Indonesia: 10 people.
• Jakarta, Jakarta, Indonesia: 6 people.
• Semarang, Jawa Tengah, Indonesia: 3 people.
• Banjarmasin, Kalimantan Selatan, Indonesia: 3 people.
• Malang, Jawa Timur, Indonesia: 3 people.
• Driyorejo, Jawa Timur, Indonesia: 2 people.
• Bandung, Jawa Barat, Indonesia: 2 people.
• Bekasi, Jawa Barat, Indonesia: 2 people.
• Pamanukan, Jawa Barat, Indonesia: 2 people.

59 Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 59 smaller aftershocks occurred. Just 26 mins after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-4.7 was detected 10 km (6 mi) east of this earthquake.

Before this earthquake struck, 10 smaller foreshocks occurred. Roughly 5 hrs before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-5.6 was detected nearby this earthquake.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

More earthquakes coming?

The risk of aftershocks decreases rapidly over time. Usually, aftershocks are at least one order of magnitude lower than a main shock.

The chance that a significant earthquake like this one is followed by an even larger earthquake is not so large. On average, scientists estimate a 94% chance that a major earthquake will not be followed by an even larger one. It is still adviced to be aware of this risk

This is an unusually powerful earthquake

Earthquakes of this strength are not so common in the region, but it's not the first time. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since April 14th, 2023, when a 7 magnitude earthquake hit 40 km (25 mi) further west-southwest. That was also the heaviest earthquake to hit the region in the past 10 years.

In total, 2 earthquakes with a magnitude of 6.4 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every 5 years.

Low tsunami risk

Based on early data it appears this earthquake was not strong enough (lower than MAG-6.5) to be likely to cause destructive tsunami's. However this earthquake appeared to have hit at a shallow depth under sea, so stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Sources

Last updated 19/05/24 07:08 (). This article is automatically generated based on available data. We keep checking multiple sources for additional information. This article gets updated as new details on this earthquake become available.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000mkfz
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20240322_0000123
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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