In the North Atlantic Ocean 70 kilometer from Road Town, British Virgin Islands, a shallow and significant M5.6 earthquake occurred in the night of Sunday May 4th, 2025. Other countries near the epicenter include U.S. Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Puerto Rico and Saint Kitts and Nevis.
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Earthquake Summary
This earthquake hit under water in the North Atlantic Ocean, 54 kilometers (33 mi) off the coast of British Virgin Islands, 70 kilometer north-northeast of Road Town in All regions. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 20 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.
| Date and Time: | May 4, 2025 02:58 (Tortola Time) - May 4, 2025 06:58 Universal Time. |
|---|---|
| Location: | 197 km ENE of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Coordinates 18°59'9"N 64°18'58"W. |
| Map: |  Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps. |
| Magnitude: | MAG 5.6 Detected by 23 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.051 . |
| Depth: | 20 km (12 mi) A very shallow depth. |
| Tsunami Risk: | Low tsunami risk Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 do not usually cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here. |
Nearby towns and cities
7 countries can be found within 300km of the epicenter of this earthquake: British Virgin Islands , U.S. Virgin Islands , Anguilla , Puerto Rico and Saint Kitts and Nevis .
Located 70 kilometer (43 mi) north-northeast of the epicenter of this earthquake, Road Town (All regions, British Virgin Islands) is the nearest significant population center.
Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. San Juan is located 197 km to the west-southwest. Bayamón is located 204 km to the west-southwest. Carolina is located 186 km to the west-southwest.
A complete list of nearby places is included below.
Overview of nearby places
| Distance | Place |
|---|---|
| 70 km (43 mi) SSW from epicenter |
Road Town All regions, British Virgin Islands. |
| 97 km (60 mi) SW from epicenter |
Charlotte Amalie Saint Thomas Island, U.S. Virgin Islands. |
| 147 km (91 mi) SSW from epicenter |
Saint Croix Saint Croix Island, U.S. Virgin Islands. |
| 158 km (98 mi) ESE from epicenter |
The Valley The Valley, Anguilla. |
| 159 km (99 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Fajardo Fajardo, Puerto Rico. |
| 165 km (103 mi) SE from epicenter |
Marigot All regions, Saint Martin. |
| 184 km (114 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Humacao Humacao, Puerto Rico. |
| 186 km (116 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Carolina Carolina, Puerto Rico. |
| 191 km (119 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Trujillo Alto Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico. |
| 196 km (122 mi) SE from epicenter |
Gustavia All regions, Saint Barthelemy. |
| 197 km (122 mi) WSW from epicenter |
San Juan San Juan, Puerto Rico. |
| 199 km (124 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Cataño Cataño, Puerto Rico. |
| 201 km (125 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Caguas Caguas, Puerto Rico. |
| 202 km (126 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Guaynabo Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. |
| 204 km (127 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Bayamón Bayamón, Puerto Rico. |
| 205 km (127 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Levittown Toa Baja, Puerto Rico. |
| 210 km (130 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Candelaria Toa Baja, Puerto Rico. |
| 218 km (135 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Cayey Cayey, Puerto Rico. |
| 220 km (137 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Guayama Guayama, Puerto Rico. |
| 226 km (140 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Vega Baja Vega Baja, Puerto Rico. |
| 237 km (147 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Manatí Manatí, Puerto Rico. |
| 242 km (150 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Barceloneta Barceloneta, Puerto Rico. |
| 252 km (157 mi) SE from epicenter |
Basseterre Saint George Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis. |
| 259 km (161 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Arecibo Arecibo, Puerto Rico. |
| 266 km (165 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Ponce Ponce, Puerto Rico. |
| 287 km (178 mi) WSW from epicenter |
Yauco Yauco, Puerto Rico. |
Shaking reported by 97 people in 5 countries
People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 97 people have reported shaking in 7 places in 5 countries (Venezuela, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Antigua and Barbuda, Netherlands Antilles).We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.
Places with most reports:
- Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands: 89 people.
- Low Lands, Sint Maarten, Netherlands Antilles: 3 people.
- El Limón, Aragua, Venezuela: 1 person.
- Hamilton, Hamilton, Bermuda: 1 person.
- Saint Johnʿs, Saint John, Antigua and Barbuda: 1 person.
- Little Bay, Sint Maarten, Netherlands Antilles: 1 person.
- Simpson Bay, Sint Maarten, Netherlands Antilles: 1 person.
6 Aftershocks detected
This main shock was followed by 6 smaller aftershocks. At a distance of 50 km (31 mi) south-southeast of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 3 days later. It measured a magnitude of 3.7
Before this earthquake struck, 3 smaller foreshocks occurred. Nearby this earthquake a foreshock struck 2 days earlier. It measured a magnitude of 3.7
Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks
| Classification | Magnitude | When | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreshock | M 3.7 |
2 days earlier Apr 29, 2025 12:47 (Tortola Time) | 63 km (39 mi) SSE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 3.7 |
2 days earlier Apr 29, 2025 12:47 (Tortola Time) | 63 km (39 mi) SSE from Main Shock. |
| Foreshock | M 3.1 |
1 day earlier Apr 30, 2025 13:21 (Tortola Time) | 71 km (44 mi) SSE from Main Shock. |
| Main Shock | M 3.9 |
May 2, 2025 00:05 (Tortola Time) | - |
| Aftershock | M 3.4 |
4 hrs later May 2, 2025 04:20 (Tortola Time) | 93 km (58 mi) WSW from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.4 |
2 days later May 4, 2025 04:01 (Tortola Time) | 36 km (22 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.4 |
2 days later May 4, 2025 04:20 (Tortola Time) | 72 km (45 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.5 |
3 days later May 4, 2025 13:24 (Tortola Time) | 81 km (50 mi) SW from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.7 |
3 days later May 4, 2025 19:41 (Tortola Time) | 67 km (42 mi) SE from Main Shock. |
| Aftershock | M 3.7 |
3 days later May 5, 2025 06:01 (Tortola Time) | 50 km (31 mi) SSE 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 are common in the region
Earthquakes of this strength occur quite regularly in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since December 9th, 2023, when a 5.7 magnitude earthquake hit 14 km (9 mi) further south-southwest. An even stronger magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck on January 7th, 2020.
In total, 4 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.6 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 3 years.
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
| 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 5.6. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami. |
This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 20 km (12 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami. |
Sources
Last updated 20/05/25 01:38 (). 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.
- US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake pr2025124000
- European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20250504_0000105
- Geonames.org: World Cities Database
- Google Maps: Static API
- Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database
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