Shallow M5.6 Earthquake struck on Tuesday Night near Mendi in Papua New Guinea.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on January 26th, 2026. Last updated January 27th, 2026.

A shallow and significant M5.6 earthquake struck under land 38 kilometer from Mendi in Papua New Guinea deep in the night of Tuesday January 27th, 2026. Roughly 3.8 million people may have felt this earthquake.

Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in Papua New Guinea, 38 kilometer (24 mi) south-southwest of Mendi in Southern Highlands. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 19 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Jan 27, 2026 03:06 (Port Moresby Time) - Jan 26, 2026 17:06 Universal Time.
Location:	38 km SSW of Mendi, Southern Highlands, Papua New Guinea. Coordinates 6°28'14"S 143°33'9"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.6 Detected by 34 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.053 .
Depth:	19 km (12 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.

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 100% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact.

Roughly 3.8 million people exposed to shaking

An estimated 3.8 million have been exposed to shaking (An MMI or Modified Mercalli Intensity level II or higher) as a result of this earthquake according scientific estimates published by the USGS.

Very strong shaking and likely moderate damage may have been experienced by an estimated 1,650 people. At VII, it is the highest MMI level this earthquake has caused. Intensity level III was experienced by a large group of people (around 1.9 million). In their region, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Papua New Guinea .

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
8,520	II	Very weak	None
1,896,000	III	Weak	Probably none
1,669,000	IV	Light	Likely none
202,400	V	Moderate	Very light
19,190	VI	Strong	Light
1,650	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 Papua New Guinea . Mendi in Southern Highlands, Papua New Guinea is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 38 kilometer (24 mi) south-southwest of Mendi. The intensity of shaking and damage in Mendi is estimated to be around level V on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (moderate shaking, very light 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

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place	Intensity (MMI)
38 km (24 mi) NNE from epicenter	Mendi Southern Highlands, Papua New Guinea.	V Moderate
101 km (63 mi) NE from epicenter	Mount Hagen Western Highlands, Papua New Guinea.	IV Light
207 km (129 mi) ENE from epicenter	Goroka Eastern Highlands, Papua New Guinea.
284 km (176 mi) ENE from epicenter	Madang Madang, Papua New Guinea.
292 km (181 mi) S from epicenter	Daru Western Province, Papua New Guinea.

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 3 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 3 people have reported shaking in 3 places, all within Papua New Guinea.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

Goroka, Eastern Highlands, Papua New Guinea: 1 person.
Kundiawa, Simbu, Papua New Guinea: 1 person.
Kainantu, Eastern Highlands, Papua New Guinea: 1 person.

Risk of aftershocks?

This earthquake did not have any significant foreshocks nor aftershocks occurring within 100km (62 mi) of its epicenter.

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).

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 December 22nd, 2025, when a 6.5 magnitude earthquake hit 235 km (146 mi) further east-northeast. An even stronger magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck on February 25th, 2018.

In total, 24 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 5 months.

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 5.6. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 19 km (12 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 27/01/26 09:48 (). 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.