On Sunday Night a Significant M5.6 Earthquake struck near Kokopo in Papua New Guinea.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on September 26th, 2026.

A significant MAG-5.6 earthquake struck under land 74 kilometer from Kokopo in Papua New Guinea just after midnight of Sunday September 27th, 2026. Around 370 thousand people have been exposed to shaking.

Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in Papua New Guinea, 74 kilometer (46 mi) south-east of Kokopo in East New Britain. The center of this earthquake had a quite shallow depth of 58 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Sep 27, 2026 00:08 (Port Moresby Time) - Sep 26, 2026 14:08 Universal Time.
Location:	74 km SE of Kokopo, East New Britain, Papua New Guinea. Coordinates 4°41'43"S 152°50'18"E.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.6 Detected by 28 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.059 .
Depth:	58 km (36 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 (6 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 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 370 thousand people exposed to shaking

An estimated 370 thousand 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.

Light shaking and likely no damage may have been experienced by an estimated 198,500 people. At IV, it is the highest MMI level this earthquake has caused. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Papua New Guinea .

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
0	II	Very weak	None
176,300	III	Weak	Probably none
198,500	IV	Light	Likely none
0	V	Moderate	Very light
0	VI	Strong	Light
0	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 . Located 74 kilometer (46 mi) south-east of the epicenter of this earthquake, Kokopo (East New Britain, Papua New Guinea) is the nearest significant population center. Kokopo experienced an earthquake intensity (MMI Scale) of roughly IV. That level implies light shaking and likely no damage.

Overview of nearby places

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place	Intensity (MMI)
74 km (46 mi) NW from epicenter	Kokopo East New Britain, Papua New Guinea.	IV Light

Earthquake Intensity Map

The maximum intensity (MMI Scale) caused by this earthquake is IV. 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 1 person

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 1 person has reported shaking in one place in 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:

Namatanai, New Ireland, Papua New Guinea: 1 person.

Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 1 smaller aftershock occurred. At a distance of 10 km (6 mi) north-east of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 8 hrs later. It measured a magnitude of 4.9

This main shock was prefaced by 1 smaller foreshock. Roughly 2 days before this earthquake, a foreshock measuring MAG-5.1 was detected nearby this earthquake.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

Detected MAG2.5+ earthquakes within within 100km (62 mi), that occurred in the three days before and after the main shock.
Classification	Magnitude	When	Where
Foreshock	M 5.1	2 days earlier Sep 25, 2026 04:00 (Port Moresby Time)	63 km (39 mi) W from Main Shock.
Main Shock This Earthquake	M 5.6	Sep 27, 2026 00:08 (Port Moresby Time)	-
Aftershock	M 4.9	8 hrs later Sep 27, 2026 07:49 (Port Moresby Time)	10 km (6 mi) NE from Main Shock.

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.

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.

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 September 16th, 2025, when a 6 magnitude earthquake hit 135 km (84 mi) further south-east. An even stronger magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck on December 17th, 2016.

In total, 72 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 2 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	This earthquake appears to have struck on land near a coastal area (6 km from the sea).	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 58 km (36 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 26/09/26 22:18 (). 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.