On Tuesday Afternoon a DESTRUCTIVE M6.8 Earthquake struck near Kumamoto in Japan.

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

Under land 14 kilometer from Kumamoto in Japan, a DESTRUCTIVE and strong MAG-6.8 earthquake occurred in the late afternoon of Tuesday July 28th, 2026. The earthquake struck near a very densely populated region. Mag 6.5+ earthquakes at such shallow depth can cause tsunami's, but this earthquake hit under land. As it's epicenter is close to a coastal area, we still advice cautiousness.

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Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in Japan, 14 kilometer (9 mi) south of Kumamoto. 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:	Jul 28, 2026 16:27 (Tokyo Time) - Jul 28, 2026 07:27 Universal Time.
Location:	14 km south of Kumamoto, Japan. Coordinates 32°40'54"N 130°43'18"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 6.8 Detected by 59 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.046 .
Depth:	10 km (6 mi) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	IX Violent On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Small Tsunami Risk Mag 6.5+ earthquakes at such shallow depth can cause tsunami's, but this earthquake hit under land. As it's epicenter is close to a coastal area, we still advice cautiousness. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Small Tsunami Risk

There is a small tsunami risk following this earthquake, as it appears the epicenter was under land, 8 km from the coast. However this was a very strong earthquake at a shallow depth that would have a very high risk at causing tsunami's if it would have occurred under sea. Stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

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 48% likelyhood of between 10 and 100 fatalities, and a 95% chance that the number of fatalities falls between 1 and 1,000.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level RED (high). They expect an 38% likelyhood of between 1,000 and 10,000 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 94% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls between 10 and 100,000 million USD.

Roughly 17 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 17 million have been exposed to shaking at an MMI level of II or higher.

Violent shaking and likely heavy damage may have been experienced by an estimated 2,080 people. At IX, it is the highest MMI level this earthquake has caused. Intensity level IV was experienced by the majority of people (around 9 million). In their region, light shaking and likely no damage can be expected.

People in 2 countries have been exposed to shaking. Roughly 17 million people were exposed to shaking in Japan , with level IX (violent shaking, likely heavy damage) as the highest recorded. People were exposed to shaking in South Korea as well.

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Japan . The closest significant population center near the earthquake is Uto in Kumamoto, Japan. Uto is located 5 kilometer (3 mi) east of the epicenter. The intensity of shaking and damage in Uto 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. Kumamoto is located 14 km to the north and experienced an intensity of VIII (severe shaking, likely moderate to heavy damage). Fukuoka is located 106 km to the north and experienced an intensity of V (moderate shaking, very light damage). Busan is located 311 km to the northwest (intensity unknown, possibly low).

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 IX.

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 55 people in 2 countries

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 55 people have reported shaking in 36 places in 2 countries (Japan, Korea (South)).We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Kumamoto, Kumamoto, Japan: 6 people.
• Matsubase, Kumamoto, Japan: 4 people.
• Fukuoka, Fukuoka, Japan: 4 people.
• Iwakuni, Yamaguchi, Japan: 3 people.
• Nagasaki, Nagasaki, Japan: 2 people.
• Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan: 2 people.
• Sasebo, Nagasaki, Japan: 2 people.
• Kagoshima, Kagoshima, Japan: 2 people.
• Yatsushiro, Kumamoto, Japan: 2 people.
• Jonan, Kumamoto, Japan: 2 people.

61 Aftershocks detected

This main shock was followed by 61 smaller aftershocks. Just 41 mins after this main shock, an earthquake measuring MAG-5.6 was detected 39 km (24 mi) south of this earthquake.

This main shock was prefaced by 2 smaller foreshocks. Roughly 2 days before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-4.2 was detected nearby this earthquake.

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.

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

Earthquakes of this strength are not so common in the region, but it's not the first time. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since January 13th, 2025, when a 6.8 magnitude earthquake hit 123 km (76 mi) further south-east. An even stronger magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck on August 8th, 2024.

In total, 2 earthquakes with a magnitude of 6.8 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 years.

Sources

Last updated 28/07/26 18:18 (). 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.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake us6000tgb9
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20260728_0000122
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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