Strong M6.0 Earthquake struck on Tuesday Night in the Gulf Of Tomini near Gorontalo (Indonesia).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on September 23rd, 2024. Last updated November 19th, 2024.

Deep in the night of Tuesday September 24th, 2024, a strong MAG-6.0 earthquake hit in the Gulf Of Tomini 68 kilometer from Gorontalo, Indonesia. Roughly 3.1 million people may have felt this earthquake.

Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Gulf Of Tomini, 56 kilometers (35 mi) off the coast of Indonesia, 68 kilometer south-southwest of Gorontalo. The center of this earthquake had an intermediate depth of 143 km.

Date and Time:	Sep 24, 2024 03:51 (Makassar Time) - Sep 23, 2024 19:51 Universal Time.
Location:	68 km SSW of Gorontalo, Indonesia. Coordinates 0°2'49"N 122°53'40"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 6.0 Detected by 72 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.037 .
Depth:	143 km (89 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

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

At least five buildings damaged in the Banggai-Boalemo-Gorontalo area.

Based on scientific estimates by the 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 3.1 million people exposed to shaking

An estimated 3.1 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.

An estimated 1,406,000 people were exposed to level IV. At this level, light shaking and likely no damage can be expected. Intensity level III was experienced by the majority of people (around 1.7 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
480	II	Very weak	None
1,685,000	III	Weak	Probably none
1,406,000	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 . Gorontalo in Gorontalo, Indonesia is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 68 kilometer (42 mi) south-southwest of Gorontalo. The intensity of shaking and damage in Gorontalo is estimated to be around level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (light shaking, likely no damage).

Multiple major population centers exist within 300km of the earthquake that struck today. Gorontalo is located 68 km to the north-northeast and experienced an intensity of IV (light shaking, likely no damage). Manado is located 276 km to the north-east (intensity unknown, possibly low). Palu is located 350 km to the west-southwest (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

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place	Intensity (MMI)
68 km (42 mi) NNE from epicenter	Gorontalo Gorontalo, Indonesia.	IV Light
101 km (63 mi) S from epicenter	Luwuk Central Sulawesi, Indonesia.	IV Light
261 km (162 mi) NE from epicenter	Tomohon North Sulawesi, Indonesia.
270 km (168 mi) NE from epicenter	Tondano North Sulawesi, Indonesia.
276 km (171 mi) NE from epicenter	Manado North Sulawesi, Indonesia.
281 km (175 mi) WSW from epicenter	Poso Central Sulawesi, Indonesia.
350 km (217 mi) WSW from epicenter	Palu Central Sulawesi, Indonesia.

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 IV.

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 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:

Luwuk, Sulawesi Tengah, Indonesia: 2 people.

4 Aftershocks detected

This main shock was followed by 4 smaller aftershocks. At a distance of 11 km (7 mi) south of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 19 hrs later. It measured a magnitude of 3.7

Before this earthquake struck, 4 smaller foreshocks occurred. A 3.9 magnitude earthquake hit 2 days earlier nearby.

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 3.9	2 days earlier Sep 22, 2024 04:09 (Makassar Time)	28 km (17 mi) NW from Main Shock.
Foreshock	M 3.8	2 days earlier Sep 22, 2024 08:19 (Makassar Time)	35 km (22 mi) SSE from Main Shock.
Foreshock	M 3.1	21 hrs earlier Sep 23, 2024 06:32 (Makassar Time)	57 km (35 mi) E from Main Shock.
Foreshock	M 2.8	20 hrs earlier Sep 23, 2024 08:12 (Makassar Time)	40 km (25 mi) E from Main Shock.
Main Shock This Earthquake	M 6.0	Sep 24, 2024 03:51 (Makassar Time)	-
Aftershock	M 2.7	3 hrs later Sep 24, 2024 06:28 (Makassar Time)	10 km (6 mi) S from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 3.7	19 hrs later Sep 24, 2024 23:19 (Makassar Time)	11 km (7 mi) S from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 3.2	22 hrs later Sep 25, 2024 01:30 (Makassar Time)	87 km (54 mi) SE from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 3.1	3 days later Sep 27, 2024 01:40 (Makassar Time)	16 km (10 mi) SSW from Main Shock.

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.

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 are common in the region

Earthquakes of this strength occur quite regularly in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since January 18th, 2023, when a 6 magnitude earthquake hit 34 km (21 mi) further east. An even stronger magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck on April 12th, 2019.

In total, 8 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 year.

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 6. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	Not this earthquake. This earthquake occurred at a depth of 143 km (89 mi). Earthquakes this deep in the earth are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 19/11/24 04:28 (). 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.