On Thursday Afternoon a Shallow M5.5 Earthquake struck 220km from Kangding in China.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on October 9th, 2025. Last updated December 4th, 2025.

In the early afternoon of Thursday October 9th, 2025, a shallow and significant Magnitude 5.5 earthquake hit under land 220 kilometer from Kangding in China. Earthquakes like this can cause significant economic damage but are usually unlikely to result on large numbers of fatalities.

Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in China, 220 kilometer (137 mi) west-northwest of Kangding in Sichuan. 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:	Oct 9, 2025 13:17 (Shanghai Time) - Oct 9, 2025 05:17 Universal Time.
Location:	220 km WNW of Kangding, Sichuan, China. Coordinates 30°52'30"N 99°53'58"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.5 Detected by 24 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.063 .
Depth:	10 km (6 mi) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	VII Very Strong On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Tsunami very unlikely While this was a shallow earthquake, it appears to have occurred under land with a magnitude not strong enough to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Significant economic impact

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 YELLOW (significant). They expect an 35% likelyhood of between 1 and 10 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 90% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls no higher than 100 million USD.

Roughly 1.2 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 1.2 million have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

An estimated 60 people were exposed to level VII. At this level, very strong shaking and likely moderate damage can be expected. Intensity level III was experienced by the majority of people (around 0.8 million). In their region, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of China .

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
311,800	II	Very weak	None
750,200	III	Weak	Probably none
99,650	IV	Light	Likely none
7,690	V	Moderate	Very light
3,070	VI	Strong	Light
60	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 China . Daocheng in Jiangsu, China is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 208 kilometer (129 mi) north of Daocheng.

Overview of nearby places

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place	Intensity (MMI)
208 km (129 mi) S from epicenter	Daocheng Jiangsu, China.
220 km (137 mi) ESE from epicenter	Kangding Sichuan, China.	II Weak
261 km (162 mi) W from epicenter	Qamdo Tibet, China.

Earthquake Intensity Map

The maximum intensity (MMI Scale) caused by this earthquake is VII. 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 China.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

Chengdu, Sichuan, China: 1 person.

2 Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 2 smaller aftershocks occurred. Just 17 mins after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-4.5 was detected 10 km (6 mi) east-southeast of this earthquake.

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 5.5	Oct 9, 2025 13:17 (Shanghai Time)	-
Aftershock	M 4.5	17 mins later Oct 9, 2025 13:34 (Shanghai Time)	10 km (6 mi) ESE from Main Shock.
Aftershock	M 4.3	22 hrs later Oct 10, 2025 11:10 (Shanghai Time)	61 km (38 mi) N 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.

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.

Read: How to Stay Safe during an Earthquake (cdc.gov).

This is the strongest earthquake in 3 years

Earthquakes of this strength occur quite regularly in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since September 5th, 2022, when a 6.6 magnitude earthquake hit 261 km (162 mi) further east-southeast. That was also the heaviest earthquake to hit the region in the past 10 years.

In total, 4 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.5 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.

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.

While MAG-6.5+ earthquakes may cause tsunami's, it appears that the epicenter of this earthquake hit under land. In addition, the reported depth is deeper than 100km, making the risk of a tsunami even less likely. 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	Not this earthquake. This earthquake appears to have struck on land far from any coast.	Not this earthquake. This earthquake had a magnitude of 5.5. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 10 km (6 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 04/12/25 13:28 (). This article is automatically generated based on available data. We keep checking multiple sources for additional information. This article gets updated as new details on this earthquake become available.