Shallow M5.8 Earthquake hit in the Indian Ocean 272km from Medan (Indonesia) on Tuesday Night.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on April 7th, 2025. Last updated April 27th, 2025.

In the Indian Ocean 272 kilometer from Medan, Indonesia, a shallow and significant MAG-5.8 earthquake occurred in the night of Tuesday April 8th, 2025. Roughly 3.9 million people may have felt this earthquake.

Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Indian Ocean, 43 kilometers (26 mi) off the coast of Indonesia, 272 kilometer southwest of Medan in North Sumatra. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 18 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Apr 8, 2025 02:49 (Jakarta Time) - Apr 7, 2025 19:49 Universal Time.
Location:	272 km SW of Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Coordinates 2°2'20"N 96°45'44"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.8 Detected by 18 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.073 .
Depth:	18 km (11 mi) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	VI Strong 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 3.9 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 3.9 million have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

An estimated 560 people were exposed to level V. At this level, moderate shaking and very light damage can be expected. The majority of people (roughly 3.6 million) live in an area exposed to level III, where weak shaking and probably no damage is expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Indonesia .

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
20,500	II	Very weak	None
3,595,000	III	Weak	Probably none
319,300	IV	Light	Likely none
560	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 117 kilometer (73 mi) west-southwest of the epicenter of this earthquake, Singkil (Aceh, Indonesia) is the nearest significant population center. The intensity of shaking and damage in Singkil is estimated to be around level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (light shaking, likely no damage).

Major cities near this earthquake: Medan is located 272 km to the north-east (intensity unknown, possibly low). Percut is located 293 km to the north-east (intensity unknown, possibly low). Binjai is located 258 km to the north-east and experienced an intensity of III (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)
117 km (73 mi) ENE from epicenter	Singkil Aceh, Indonesia.	IV Light
218 km (135 mi) ENE from epicenter	Tongging North Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
225 km (140 mi) ENE from epicenter	Kabanjahe North Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
227 km (141 mi) E from epicenter	Sibolga North Sumatra, Indonesia.
233 km (145 mi) NE from epicenter	Berastagi North Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
244 km (152 mi) NNW from epicenter	Meulaboh Aceh, Indonesia.
258 km (160 mi) NE from epicenter	Binjai North Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
266 km (165 mi) NE from epicenter	Stabat North Sumatra, Indonesia.	III Weak
268 km (167 mi) NE from epicenter	Sunggal North Sumatra, Indonesia.
269 km (167 mi) NE from epicenter	Deli Tua North Sumatra, Indonesia.
272 km (169 mi) NE from epicenter	Medan North Sumatra, Indonesia.
276 km (171 mi) ENE from epicenter	Pematangsiantar North Sumatra, Indonesia.
278 km (173 mi) NE from epicenter	Pangkalan Brandan North Sumatra, Indonesia.
283 km (176 mi) NE from epicenter	Labuhan Deli North Sumatra, Indonesia.
287 km (178 mi) NE from epicenter	Tanjungtiram North Sumatra, Indonesia.
288 km (179 mi) ESE from epicenter	Padangsidempuan North Sumatra, Indonesia.
288 km (179 mi) NE from epicenter	Belawan North Sumatra, Indonesia.
293 km (182 mi) ENE from epicenter	Pekan Bahapal North Sumatra, Indonesia.
293 km (182 mi) NE from epicenter	Percut North Sumatra, Indonesia.
297 km (185 mi) NE from epicenter	Perbaungan North Sumatra, Indonesia.
302 km (188 mi) NNE from epicenter	Langsa Aceh, Indonesia.
303 km (188 mi) ENE from epicenter	Tebingtinggi North Sumatra, Indonesia.
332 km (206 mi) E from epicenter	Bandar North Sumatra, Indonesia.
334 km (208 mi) ENE from epicenter	Kisaran North Sumatra, Indonesia.
341 km (212 mi) E from epicenter	Rantauprapat North Sumatra, Indonesia.
352 km (219 mi) N from epicenter	Lhokseumawe Aceh, Indonesia.
352 km (219 mi) N from epicenter	Bireun Aceh, Indonesia.
353 km (219 mi) ENE from epicenter	Tanjungbalai North Sumatra, Indonesia.
356 km (221 mi) ENE from epicenter	Teluk Nibung North Sumatra, Indonesia.
357 km (222 mi) N from epicenter	Reuleuet Aceh, Indonesia.
383 km (238 mi) NNW from epicenter	Sigli Aceh, Indonesia.

Earthquake Intensity Map

The maximum intensity (MMI Scale) caused by this earthquake is V. 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 1 person

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 1 person has reported shaking in one place in Malaysia.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

Sungai Ara, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia: 1 person.

3 Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 3 smaller aftershocks occurred. At a distance of 8 km (5 mi) south of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 1 day 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 5.8	Apr 8, 2025 02:49 (Jakarta Time)	-
Aftershock	M 3.7	1 day later Apr 9, 2025 09:14 (Jakarta Time)	8 km (5 mi) S from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 3.0	1 day later Apr 9, 2025 09:33 (Jakarta Time)	32 km (20 mi) W from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 3.6	2 days later Apr 10, 2025 08:17 (Jakarta Time)	2.3 km (1.4 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 are common in the region

Earthquakes of this strength occur quite regularly in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since April 3rd, 2023, when a 6.1 magnitude earthquake hit 266 km (165 mi) further east-southeast. An even stronger magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck on May 14th, 2021.

In total, 10 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.8 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.

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 5.8. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 18 km (11 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 27/04/25 21:48 (). 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.