Shallow M5.9 Earthquake struck on Sunday Night in the Sulawesi Sea 118km from General Santos (The Philippines).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on April 19th, 2025. Last updated May 18th, 2025.

A shallow and significant MAG-5.9 earthquake struck in the Sulawesi Sea 118 kilometer from General Santos, The Philippines just after midnight of Sunday April 20th, 2025. Roughly 12 million people may have felt this earthquake.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Sulawesi Sea, 37 kilometers (23 mi) off the coast of The Philippines, 118 kilometer west-southwest of General Santos in Soccsksargen. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 12 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Apr 20, 2025 12:11AM (Manila Time) - Apr 19, 2025 16:11 Universal Time.
Location:	118 km WSW of General Santos, Soccsksargen, The Philippines. Coordinates 5°49'58"N 124°8'47"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.9 Detected by 63 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.039 .
Depth:	12 km (7 mi) A very 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 12 million people exposed to shaking

This earthquake may have been felt by around 12 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.

An estimated 400,700 people were exposed to level V. At this level, moderate shaking and very light damage can be expected. The majority of people (roughly 7.1 million) live in an area exposed to level III, where weak shaking and probably no damage is expected.

People in 2 countries have been exposed to shaking. In The Philippines , around 12 million people, with impact levels up to V (moderate shaking, very light damage). People were exposed to shaking in Indonesia as well.

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in The Philippines . Lake Sebu in Soccsksargen, The Philippines is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 76 kilometer (47 mi) southwest of Lake Sebu. Lake Sebu experienced an earthquake intensity (MMI Scale) of roughly IV. That level implies light shaking and likely no damage.

Major cities near this earthquake: Budta is located 156 km to the north-northeast and experienced an intensity of IV (light shaking, likely no damage). Malingao is located 152 km to the north-northeast and experienced an intensity of IV (light shaking, likely no damage). General Santos is located 118 km to the east-northeast and experienced an intensity of V (moderate shaking, very light 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

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

Shaking reported by 33 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 33 people have reported shaking in 16 places, all within 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:

• Buayan, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 16 people.
• Kalawag, Central Mindanao, Philippines: 2 people.
• Katangawan, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 2 people.
• Kalamansig, Central Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.
• Alabel, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.
• Banga, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.
• Davao, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.
• Kiamba, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.
• Koronadal, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.
• Maitum, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 1 person.

13 Aftershocks detected

Since this main shock, 13 smaller aftershocks were detected. At a distance of 1.6 km (1 mi) northwest of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 1 hr later. It measured a magnitude of 5.3

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

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.

In only six percent of cases, significant earthquakes are followed by a larger main shock, making the current earthquake a foreshock. While the chance of this happening is not so large, it is adviced to maintain cautiousness in the hours and days following a major earthquake.

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 July 11th, 2024, when a 7.1 magnitude earthquake hit 114 km (71 mi) further west-northwest. An even stronger magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck on January 10th, 2017.

In total, 27 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.9 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 5 months.

Low tsunami risk

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

Sources

Last updated 18/05/25 00:58 (). 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.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000q78l
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20250419_0000173
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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