Significant M5.4 Earthquake struck on Tuesday Night in Indonesia.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on September 9th, 2024. Last updated September 16th, 2024.

A significant M5.4 earthquake struck under land Indonesia in the early morning of Tuesday September 10th, 2024. Around 1.6 million people have been exposed to shaking. Another nearby country is The Philippines.

Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in Indonesia, 262 kilometer (163 mi) south-east of General Santos in Soccsksargen. The center of this earthquake had an intermediate depth of 72 km.

Date and Time:	Sep 10, 2024 05:01AM (Manila Time) - Sep 9, 2024 21:01 Universal Time.
Location:	262 km SE of General Santos, Soccsksargen, The Philippines. Coordinates 4°21'13"N 126°44'24"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.4 Detected by 70 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.07 .
Depth:	72 km (45 mi) An intermediate depth.
Max. Intensity:	V Moderate On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Tsunami very unlikely While this was a shallow earthquake in a coastal area, it appears to have occurred under land (4 km from the sea) with a magnitude that is usually not strong enough 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 1.6 million people exposed to shaking

This earthquake may have been felt by around 1.6 million people. That is the expected population size of the area exposed to a level of shaking of II or higher on the Modified Mercalli scale according to the USGS.

Light shaking and likely no damage may have been experienced by an estimated 231,900 people. At IV, it is the highest MMI level this earthquake has caused. Intensity level III was experienced by a large group of people (around 740 thousand). In their region, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected.

People in 2 countries have been exposed to shaking. In Indonesia , around 360 thousand people, with impact levels up to IV (light shaking, likely no damage). In The Philippines , around 1.2 million people.

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
574,500	II	Very weak	None
744,500	III	Weak	Probably none
231,900	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 The Philippines . Glan in Soccsksargen, The Philippines is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 236 kilometer (147 mi) south-east of Glan. The intensity of shaking and damage in Glan is estimated to be around level III on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (weak shaking, probably 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)
236 km (147 mi) NW from epicenter	Glan Soccsksargen, The Philippines.	III Weak
241 km (150 mi) NW from epicenter	Malapatan Soccsksargen, The Philippines.	II Weak
252 km (157 mi) NW from epicenter	Alabel Soccsksargen, The Philippines.	III Weak
261 km (162 mi) NNW from epicenter	Malita Davao, The Philippines.
262 km (163 mi) NW from epicenter	General Santos Soccsksargen, The Philippines.	III Weak
268 km (167 mi) NW from epicenter	Maluñgun Soccsksargen, The Philippines.
279 km (173 mi) NW from epicenter	Polomolok Soccsksargen, The Philippines.
282 km (175 mi) NNW from epicenter	Santa Maria Davao, The Philippines.
294 km (183 mi) NNW from epicenter	Lupon Davao, The Philippines.
295 km (183 mi) NNW from epicenter	Mati Davao, The Philippines.
296 km (184 mi) NW from epicenter	Tupi Soccsksargen, The Philippines.

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.

Shaking reported by 2 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 2 people have reported shaking in one place in 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:

Alabel, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 2 people.

2 Aftershocks detected

This main shock was followed by 2 smaller aftershocks. At a distance of 13 km (8 mi) east of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 37 mins later. It measured a magnitude of 3.7

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 5.4	Sep 10, 2024 05:01 (Manila Time)	-
Aftershock	M 3.7	37 mins later Sep 10, 2024 05:38 (Manila Time)	13 km (8 mi) E from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 3.2	1 day later Sep 11, 2024 15:59 (Manila Time)	21 km (13 mi) SE 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 June 15th, 2024, when a 5.6 magnitude earthquake hit 143 km (89 mi) further south-southeast. An even stronger magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck on August 11th, 2021.

In total, 126 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.4 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 29 days.

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.

While MAG-6.5+ earthquakes may cause tsunami's, it appears that the epicenter of this earthquake hit under land. In addition, the reported depth is deeper than 100km, making the risk of a tsunami even less likely. 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 on land near a coastal area (4 km from the sea).	Not this earthquake. This earthquake had a magnitude of 5.4. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 72 km (45 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 16/09/24 20:38 (). As more information on this earthquake becomes available this article will be updated. This article is automatically composed based on data originating from multiple sources.