On Thursday Night a Significant M5.7 Earthquake struck in the South Pacific Ocean 169km from Suva (Fiji).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on July 31st, 2024. Last updated September 29th, 2024.

Deep in the night of Thursday August 1st, 2024, a significant M5.7 earthquake hit in the South Pacific Ocean 169 kilometer from Suva, Fiji. Such earthquakes in regions like this usually have a minimal impact on people and the economy.

Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the South Pacific Ocean, 74 kilometers (46 mi) off the coast of Fiji, 169 kilometer east-northeast of Suva in Central. The center of this earthquake had a very deep depth of 606 km. Deep earthquakes usually have less impact than shallower earthquakes of similar strenght.

Date and Time:	Aug 1, 2024 03:18 (Fiji Time) - Jul 31, 2024 15:18 Universal Time.
Location:	169 km ENE of Suva, Central, Fiji. Coordinates 17°40'11"S 179°57'17"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.7 Detected by 21 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.068 .
Depth:	606 km (377 mi) A very deep depth.
Max. Intensity:	II Weak 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.

Not many people felt this earthquake

All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Fiji .

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
613,900	I	Not noticable	None
0	II	Very weak	None
0	III	Weak	Probably none
0	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 Fiji . Located 151 kilometer (94 mi) south-southeast of the epicenter of this earthquake, Labasa (Northern, Fiji) is the nearest significant population center. The intensity of shaking and damage in Labasa is estimated to be around level I on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (not noticeable, no damage).

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

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place	Intensity (MMI)
151 km (94 mi) NNW from epicenter	Labasa Northern, Fiji.	I Not felt
169 km (105 mi) WSW from epicenter	Suva Central, Fiji.	I Not felt
265 km (165 mi) W from epicenter	Lautoka Western, Fiji.
269 km (167 mi) W from epicenter	Nadi Western, Fiji.

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 I.

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.

3 Aftershocks detected

Since this main shock, 3 smaller aftershocks were detected. Just 47 sec after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-4.6 was detected 5 km (3 mi) north of this earthquake.

Before this earthquake struck, 1 smaller foreshock occurred. Roughly 2 days before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-4.5 was detected nearby this earthquake.

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
Foreshock	M 4.5	2 days earlier Jul 29, 2024 22:42 (Fiji Time)	38 km (24 mi) ESE from Main Shock.
Main Shock This Earthquake	M 5.7	Aug 1, 2024 03:18 (Fiji Time)	-
Aftershock	M 4.6	47 sec later Aug 1, 2024 03:18 (Fiji Time)	5 km (3 mi) N from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 4.1	24 mins later Aug 1, 2024 03:42 (Fiji Time)	17 km (10 mi) NNE from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 4.2	4 hrs later Aug 1, 2024 07:00 (Fiji Time)	2.1 km (1.3 mi) W from Main Shock.

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.

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 October 31st, 2023, when a 6.5 magnitude earthquake hit 109 km (68 mi) further east. An even stronger magnitude 8.2 earthquake struck on August 19th, 2018.

In total, 30 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.7 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

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.

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

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 5.7. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	Not this earthquake. This earthquake occurred at a depth of 606 km (377 mi). Earthquakes this deep in the earth are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 29/09/24 08:28 (). This article contains currently available information about the earthquake and is automatically composed. We continue to update this article up to a few days after the earthquake occurred.