On Wednesday Evening a Significant M5.1 Earthquake struck in the Indian Ocean 250km from Padang (Indonesia).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on June 5th, 2024. Last updated June 29th, 2024.

A significant Magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck in the Indian Ocean 250 kilometer from Padang, Indonesia in the evening of Wednesday June 5th, 2024. Around 6.2 million people have been exposed to shaking.

Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Indian Ocean, 27 kilometers (17 mi) off the coast of Indonesia, 250 kilometer northwest of Padang in West Sumatra. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 65 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Jun 5, 2024 18:16 (Jakarta Time) - Jun 5, 2024 11:16 Universal Time.
Location:	250 km NW of Padang, West Sumatra, Indonesia. Coordinates 0°25'10"N 98°33'56"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.1 Detected by 17 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.075 .
Depth:	65 km (40 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	V Moderate 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.

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 6.2 million people exposed to shaking

The USGS has published a report estimating the number of people exposed to this earthquake. Acoording to their analysis, roughly 6.2 million have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

The highest earthquake impact level for this earthquake is IV, which corresponds with light shaking and likely no damage. Roughly 955,800 people are expected to be exposed to this level. Intensity level III was experienced by the majority of people (around 5.3 million). In their region, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Indonesia .

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
20	II	Very weak	None
5,264,000	III	Weak	Probably none
955,800	IV	Light	Likely none
0	V	Moderate	Very light
0	VI	Strong	Light
0	VII	Very Strong	Moderate
0	VIII	Severe	Moderate to heavy
0	IX	Violent	Heavy
0	X	Extreme	Very heavy

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Indonesia . Located 132 kilometer (82 mi) southwest of the epicenter of this earthquake, Padangsidempuan (North Sumatra, Indonesia) is the nearest significant population center. Padangsidempuan experienced an earthquake intensity (MMI Scale) of roughly III. That level implies weak shaking and probably no damage.

Major cities near this earthquake: Padang is located 250 km to the south-east and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Padangsidempuan is located 132 km to the north-east and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Pematangsiantar is located 288 km to the north (intensity unknown, possibly low).

The table below provides an overview of all places in proximity of today's earthquake. Where available, the estimated intensity on the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale in each place is included. Places where this information is omitted likely experienced little impact.

Overview of nearby places

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place	Intensity (MMI)
132 km (82 mi) NE from epicenter	Padangsidempuan North Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
149 km (93 mi) N from epicenter	Sibolga North Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
208 km (129 mi) ESE from epicenter	Pariaman West Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
216 km (134 mi) ESE from epicenter	Bukittinggi West Sumatra, Indonesia.
224 km (139 mi) NE from epicenter	Bandar North Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
225 km (140 mi) NNW from epicenter	Singkil Aceh, Indonesia.
234 km (145 mi) NE from epicenter	Rantauprapat North Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
241 km (150 mi) ESE from epicenter	Payakumbuh West Sumatra, Indonesia.
250 km (155 mi) SE from epicenter	Padang West Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
269 km (167 mi) ESE from epicenter	Solok West Sumatra, Indonesia.
276 km (171 mi) N from epicenter	Tongging North Sumatra, Indonesia.
288 km (179 mi) N from epicenter	Pematangsiantar North Sumatra, Indonesia.
296 km (184 mi) ESE from epicenter	Sijunjung West Sumatra, Indonesia.
298 km (185 mi) N from epicenter	Kabanjahe North Sumatra, Indonesia.

Earthquake Intensity Map

The maximum intensity (MMI Scale) caused by this earthquake is IV. The map below shows in which areas this earthquake was the most and least impactful. It is based on data from the US Geographic Survey.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Earthquake Intensity Map based on Shakemap Data provided by USGS.

Aftershocks detected

This main shock was followed by 1 smaller aftershock. At a distance of 48 km (30 mi) south-southeast of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 4 hrs later. It measured a magnitude of 3.3

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

Detected MAG2.5+ earthquakes within within 100km (62 mi), that occurred in the three days before and after the main shock.
Classification	Magnitude	When	Where
Main Shock This Earthquake	M 5.1	Jun 5, 2024 18:16 (Jakarta Time)	-
Aftershock	M 3.3	4 hrs later Jun 5, 2024 22:32 (Jakarta Time)	48 km (30 mi) SSE from Main Shock.

More earthquakes coming?

Aftershocks are usually at least 1 order of magnitude less strong than main shocks. The more time passes, the smaller the chance and likely strength of any potential aftershocks.

It's always adviced to be cautious of the risk of a larger shock following any significant earthquake, however this risk is fairly small. There is a roughly 94 percent change that no larger main shock will follow in the days following this earthquake.

Read: How to Stay Safe during an Earthquake (cdc.gov).

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 February 23rd, 2024, when a 5.3 magnitude earthquake hit 123 km (77 mi) further south. An even stronger magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck on April 24th, 2023.

In total, 69 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.1 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 2 months.

Low tsunami risk

DISCLAIMER: We strongly suggest to closely monitor advice from local authorities with regards to tsunami risks. Our analysis is based on automatically collected data from external sources, and these might contain mistakes. In addition, earthquakes can cause landslides that may lead to a tsunami, or be a followed by another, potentially stonger, earthquake.

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

Factor	Under Sea?	MAG-6.5 or stronger?	Shallow depth?
Explanation	Almost all tsunami's are caused by earthquakes with their epicenter under sea or very near the sea. However stay cautious in coastal areas as earthquakes on land may cause landslides into sea, potentially still causing a local tsunami.	Under MAG 6.5: Very unlikely to cause a tsunami. MAG 6.5 to 7.5: Destructive tsunami's do occur, but are uncommon. Likely to observe small sea level changes. MAG 7.6+: Earthquakes with these magnitudes might produce destructive tsunami's.	Most destructive tsunami's are caused by shallow earthquakes with a depth between 0 and 100km under the surface of the earth. Deeper tsunami's are unlikely to displace to ocean floor.
This Earthquake	This earthquake appears to have struck under the sea.	Not this earthquake. This earthquake had a magnitude of 5.1. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 65 km (40 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 29/06/24 13:48 (). 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.