Significant M5.9 Earthquake hit in the North Pacific Ocean near Tapachula (Mexico) on Monday Evening.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on July 28th, 2026.

Just before midnight of Monday July 27th, 2026, a significant M5.9 earthquake hit in the North Pacific Ocean 78 kilometer from Tapachula, Mexico. Around 10 million people have been exposed to shaking. Other countries near the epicenter include Guatemala and El Salvador.

Felt the earthquake? Share this article:

Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the North Pacific Ocean, 49 kilometers (31 mi) off the coast of Mexico, 78 kilometer southwest of Tapachula in Chiapas. 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:	Jul 27, 2026 23:35 (Mexico City Time) - Jul 28, 2026 05:35 Universal Time.
Location:	78 km SW of Tapachula, Chiapas, Mexico. Coordinates 14°17'46"N 92°37'20"W.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.9 Detected by 70 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.037 .
Depth:	35 km (22 mi) A quite 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 90% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 90% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact.

Roughly 10 million people exposed to shaking

An estimated 10 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.

Moderate shaking and very light damage may have been experienced by an estimated 160 people. At V, it is the highest MMI level this earthquake has caused. The majority of people (roughly 8 million) live in an area exposed to level III, where weak shaking and probably no damage is expected.

People in 2 countries have been exposed to shaking. Roughly 1.5 million people were exposed to shaking in Mexico , with level V (moderate shaking, very light damage) as the highest recorded. Roughly 9 million people were exposed to shaking in Guatemala .

Nearby towns and cities

Mexico , Guatemala and El Salvador are all located within 300km distance of the epicenter of the earthquake.

Tapachula in Chiapas, Mexico is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 78 kilometer (48 mi) southwest of Tapachula. Tapachula experienced an earthquake intensity (MMI Scale) of roughly IV. That level implies light shaking and likely no damage.

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Guatemala City is located 230 km to the east (intensity unknown, possibly low). Tapachula is located 78 km to the north-east and experienced an intensity of IV (light shaking, likely no damage). Mixco is located 220 km to the east (intensity unknown, possibly low).

An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below. If places don't have intensity data available, it likely means the experienced impact in those places was fairly small.

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The intensity in shaking and damage by this earthquake is illustrated through the map below. The highest intensity measured for this earthquake is V.

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 20 people in 2 countries

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 20 people have reported shaking in 12 places in 2 countries (Guatemala, Mexico).We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Olintepeque, Quezaltenango, Guatemala: 3 people.
• Panajachel, Sololá, Guatemala: 2 people.
• Petapa, Guatemala, Guatemala: 2 people.
• Quetzaltenango, Quezaltenango, Guatemala: 2 people.
• Guatemala, Guatemala, Guatemala: 2 people.
• Chinautla, Guatemala, Guatemala: 2 people.
• Antigua Guatemala, Sacatepéquez, Guatemala: 2 people.
• Salcajá, Quezaltenango, Guatemala: 1 person.
• Santa Catarina Pinula, Guatemala, Guatemala: 1 person.
• San Andrés Semetabaj, Sololá, Guatemala: 1 person.

Aftershocks detected

This main shock was prefaced by 52 smaller foreshocks. Nearby this earthquake a foreshock struck 5 hrs earlier. It measured a magnitude of 4.4

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.

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.

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 July 17th, 2026, when a 6.4 magnitude earthquake hit 52 km (32 mi) further west. An even stronger magnitude 8.2 earthquake struck on September 8th, 2017.

In total, 20 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.9 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 6 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 28/07/26 18:08 (). 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.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000tgau
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20260728_0000093
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

Share this article: