On Monday Morning a DAMAGING M7.8 Earthquake struck in the Sulawesi Sea near General Santos (The Philippines).

Written by Earthquakelist.org on June 7th, 2026. Last updated June 8th, 2026.

In the Sulawesi Sea 60 kilometer from General Santos, The Philippines, a DAMAGING and very strong M7.8 earthquake occurred in the morning of Monday June 8th, 2026. Mag 6.5+ earthquakes at shallow depth under sea have the potential to cause tsunami's. Another nearby country is Indonesia.

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Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the Sulawesi Sea, 25 kilometers (16 mi) off the coast of The Philippines, 60 kilometer south of General Santos in Soccsksargen. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 55 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Jun 8, 2026 07:37AM (Manila Time) - Jun 7, 2026 23:37 Universal Time.
Location:	60 km south of General Santos, Soccsksargen, The Philippines. Coordinates 5°35'30"N 125°2'49"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 7.8 Detected by 125 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.028 .
Depth:	55 km (34 mi) A quite shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	IX Violent On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Potential Tsunami Risk Mag 6.5+ earthquakes at shallow depth under sea have the potential to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Potential Tsunami Risk

There is a potential tsunami risk in the aftermath of this earthquake, immediately evacuate to higher grounds away from coastal areas and monitor advice from local authorities. This earthquake checks all the likely tsunami risk factors: under sea, at a magnitude of MAG-6.5+ and at a shallow depth.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Significant impact predicted

Based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level YELLOW (significant). They expect an 42% likelyhood of between 10 and 100 fatalities, and a 90% chance that the number of fatalities falls between 1 and 1,000.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level ORANGE (orange). They expect an 39% likelyhood of between 100 and 1,000 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 94% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls between 1 and 10,000 million USD.

Roughly 29 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 29 million have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

The highest earthquake impact level for this earthquake is VIII, which corresponds with severe shaking and likely moderate to heavy damage. Roughly 917,200 people are expected to be exposed to this level. Intensity level IV was experienced by a large group of people (around 13 million). In their region, light shaking and likely no damage can be expected.

People in 2 countries have been exposed to shaking. In The Philippines , around 28 million people, with impact levels up to VIII (severe shaking, likely moderate to heavy damage). In Indonesia, shaking was experienced too.

Nearby towns and cities

The Philippines and Indonesia are both located within 300km distance of the epicenter of the earthquake. Futher away, this earthquake may also have been felt in Malaysia, Palau and Brunei.

Glan in Soccsksargen, The Philippines is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 31 kilometer (19 mi) southwest of Glan. The intensity of shaking and damage in Glan is estimated to be around level VIII on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (severe shaking, likely moderate to heavy damage).

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. General Santos is located 60 km to the north and experienced an intensity of VIII (severe shaking, likely moderate to heavy damage). Davao is located 176 km to the north and experienced an intensity of VI (strong shaking, probably light damage). Budta is located 191 km to the north and experienced an intensity of VI (strong shaking, probably 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

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 VIII.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Shaking reported by 139 people in 5 countries

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 139 people have reported shaking in 70 places in 5 countries (Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan).We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Davao, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 27 people.
• Katangawan, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 10 people.
• Manado, Sulawesi Utara, Indonesia: 4 people.
• Zamboanga, Western Mindanao, Philippines: 4 people.
• Barra, Northern Mindanao, Philippines: 4 people.
• Butuan, Caraga, Philippines: 3 people.
• San Jose (General Santos City, South Cotabato), Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 3 people.
• Libertad, Central Mindanao, Philippines: 3 people.
• Canocotan, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 3 people.
• Ula, Southern Mindanao, Philippines: 3 people.

125 Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 125 smaller aftershocks occurred. A 6.5 magnitude earthquake hit 1 hr later 22 km (14 mi) south-east of this earthquake.

This main shock was prefaced by 1 smaller foreshock. A 4.4 magnitude earthquake hit 2 days earlier nearby.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

More earthquakes coming?

Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.

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.

This is an unusually powerful earthquake

No earthquake of this strength has struck this region for a long time. Our data goes back 10 years, and no earthquakes measuring a magnitude of 7.8 or higher have been detected within 300 km (186 mi) of this epicenter.

Sources

Last updated 08/06/26 20:48 (). 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 us7000srb1
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20260607_0000366
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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