Shallow M5.4 AFTERSHOCK hit in the East China Sea 265km from Kagoshima (Japan) on Thursday Afternoon.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on July 3rd, 2025. Last updated July 20th, 2025.

In the late afternoon of Thursday July 3rd, 2025, a shallow and significant MAG-5.4 aftershock hit in the East China Sea 265 kilometer from Kagoshima, Japan. Roughly 130 thousand people may have felt this earthquake.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the East China Sea, 106 kilometers (66 mi) off the coast of Japan, 265 kilometer south-southwest of Kagoshima. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 10 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Jul 3, 2025 16:13 (Tokyo Time) - Jul 3, 2025 07:13 Universal Time.
Location:	265 km SSW of Kagoshima, Japan. Coordinates 29°24'7"N 129°23'28"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.4 Detected by 35 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.052 .
Depth:	10 km (6 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 130 thousand people exposed to shaking

This earthquake may have been felt by around 130 thousand 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 0 people were exposed to level V. At this level, moderate shaking and very light damage can be expected. The majority of people (roughly 120 thousand) 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 Japan .

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Japan . Located 115 kilometer (71 mi) north of the epicenter of this earthquake, Naze (Kagoshima, Japan) is the nearest significant population center. The intensity of shaking and damage in Naze is estimated to be around level III on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (weak shaking, probably no damage).

A complete list of nearby places is included below. Estimated intensity data (MMI) sourced from a shake-map published by the US Geographic Survey is shown where available (cities without data probably experienced little impact).

Overview of nearby places

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

This is likely an aftershock

This earthquake was an aftershock. A larger mag. 5.6 earthquake struck 23 km (14 mi) southwest in advance of this 5.4 earthquake around 1 day earlier.

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.

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.

Earthquakes like this happen often in the region

Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. In total, 44 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 3 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 20/07/25 08:48 (). 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.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us7000qadp
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20250703_0000087
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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