On Saturday Afternoon a Significant M5.3 Earthquake struck in Indonesia.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on November 15th, 2025. Last updated December 7th, 2025.

A significant Magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck under land Indonesia in the early afternoon of Saturday November 15th, 2025. Around 510 thousand people have been exposed to shaking. Another country near the epicenter is The Philippines.

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Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in Indonesia, 283 kilometer (176 mi) south-east of General Santos in Soccsksargen. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 35 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Nov 15, 2025 01:33PM (Manila Time) - Nov 15, 2025 05:33 Universal Time.
Location:	283 km SE of General Santos, Soccsksargen, The Philippines. Coordinates 4°1'25"N 126°38'12"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.3 Detected by 20 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.069 .
Depth:	35 km (22 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	V Moderate On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Tsunami very unlikely While this was a shallow earthquake in a coastal area, it appears to have occurred under land (0 km from the sea) with a magnitude that is usually not strong enough to 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 510 thousand people exposed to shaking

The USGS has published a report estimating the number of people exposed to this earthquake. Acoording to their analysis, roughly 510 thousand have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

An estimated 60 people were exposed to level V. At this level, moderate shaking and very light damage can be expected. Intensity level II was experienced by a large group of people (around 230 thousand). In their region, very weak shaking and no damage can be expected.

People in 2 countries have been exposed to shaking. In Indonesia , around 340 thousand people, with impact levels up to V (moderate shaking, very light damage). Roughly 170 thousand people were exposed to shaking in The Philippines .

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in The Philippines . Glan in Soccsksargen, The Philippines is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 256 kilometer (159 mi) south-east of Glan. The intensity of shaking and damage in Glan is estimated to be around level II on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (very weak shaking, 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 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

6 Aftershocks detected

Since this main shock, 6 smaller aftershocks were detected. At a distance of 15 km (9 mi) east-southeast of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 2 hrs later. It measured a magnitude of 3.6

Before this earthquake struck, 1 smaller foreshock occurred. Nearby this earthquake a foreshock struck 2 days earlier. It measured a magnitude of 3.1

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

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.

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 November 3rd, 2025, when a 5.3 magnitude earthquake hit 164 km (102 mi) further west-northwest. An even stronger magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck on August 11th, 2021.

In total, 167 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.3 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 22 days.

Tsunami very unlikely

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

Sources

Last updated 07/12/25 00:28 (). 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.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000rneu
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20251115_0000115
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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