On Friday Afternoon a Strong M6.0 Earthquake struck in the Philippine Sea 198km from General Santos (The Philippines).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on March 8th, 2024. Last updated May 7th, 2024.

In the Philippine Sea 198 kilometer from General Santos, The Philippines, a strong M6.0 earthquake occurred in the late afternoon of Friday March 8th, 2024. Shaking may have been felt by a total of 6.5 million people.

Felt the earthquake? Share this article:

Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Philippine Sea, 98 kilometers (61 mi) off the coast of The Philippines, 198 kilometer east of General Santos in Soccsksargen. The center of this earthquake had an intermediate depth of 115 km.

Date and Time:	Mar 8, 2024 05:11PM (Manila Time) - Mar 8, 2024 09:11 Universal Time.
Location:	198 km east of General Santos, Soccsksargen, The Philippines. Coordinates 5°49'0"N 126°56'27"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 6.0 Detected by 88 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.033 .
Depth:	115 km (71 mi) An intermediate depth.
Max. Intensity:	V Moderate On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Tsunami very unlikely Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 at depths deeper than 100km are very unlikely to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Minimal impact predicted

Based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities, and a 96% chance that the number of fatalities falls no higher than 10.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 96% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls no higher than 10 million USD.

Roughly 6.5 million people exposed to shaking

An estimated 6.5 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.

Light shaking and likely no damage may have been experienced by an estimated 4,650,000 people. At IV, it is the highest MMI level this earthquake has caused.

People in 2 countries have been exposed to shaking. Roughly 6.4 million people were exposed to shaking in The Philippines , with level IV (light shaking, likely no damage) as the highest recorded. Shaking was experienced by inhabitants of Indonesia too.

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in The Philippines . Mati in Davao, The Philippines is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 150 kilometer (93 mi) south-southeast of Mati. The intensity of shaking and damage in Mati is estimated to be around level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (light shaking, likely no damage).

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Davao is located 203 km to the northwest and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Budta is located 316 km to the west-northwest (intensity unknown, possibly low). Malingao is located 311 km to the west-northwest (intensity unknown, possibly low).

An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below. If places don't have intensity data available, it likely means the experienced impact in those places was fairly small.

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The intensity in shaking and damage by this earthquake is illustrated through the map below. The highest intensity measured for this earthquake is IV.

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 7 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 7 people have reported shaking in 7 places, all within Philippines.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Bislig, Caraga, Philippines: 1 person.
• Butuan, Caraga, Philippines: 1 person.
• Kisante, Central Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.
• Buayan, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.
• Cablalan, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.
• Davao, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.
• La Libertad, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.

Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 1 smaller aftershock occurred. Just 17 hrs after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-3 was detected 24 km (15 mi) northwest of this earthquake.

Before this earthquake struck, 2 smaller foreshocks occurred. A 3.9 magnitude earthquake hit 3 days earlier nearby.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

More earthquakes coming?

Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.

In only six percent of cases, significant earthquakes are followed by a larger main shock, making the current earthquake a foreshock. While the chance of this happening is not so large, it is adviced to maintain cautiousness in the hours and days following a major earthquake.

Earthquakes like this happen often in the region

Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since January 8th, 2024, when a 6.7 magnitude earthquake hit 132 km (82 mi) further southwest. An even stronger magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck on August 11th, 2021.

In total, 34 earthquakes with a magnitude of 6 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 4 months.

Tsunami very unlikely

For a serious tsunami to occur, earthquakes usually need to have a magnitude of at least 6.5 and occur at a shallow depth of maximum 100km. Neither are the case with this earthquake. However always stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Sources

Last updated 07/05/24 06:08 (). 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 us7000m439
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20240308_0000089
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

Share this article: