Earthquake Now: The Latest Quakes Logged Overnight and What They Mean for Aftershocks and Alerts

Seismic activity in the past 24 hours has been led by a magnitude 6.0 offshore event in the South Pacific near New Caledonia, alongside notable tremors in the southern Philippines, southwest China, and northwestern Kashmir. Early assessments point to limited direct impact in the largest offshore quake, while inland events are driving precautionary measures and ongoing checks. If you’re searching “earthquake now” because you felt shaking, expect details to firm up as monitoring agencies refine locations, depths, and intensity reports.

Several quakes clustered across Asia and the Pacific overnight, with the most consequential public-safety updates coming from areas where shaking was felt strongly enough to trigger inspections, temporary suspensions, and aftershock advisories.

• A magnitude 6.0 quake struck offshore near the Loyalty Islands/New Caledonia area at a shallow depth, with no tsunami threat issued.

• A magnitude 5.2 quake hit off Kalamansig, Sultan Kudarat in the southern Philippines, with shaking reaching moderate intensity in nearby towns and aftershocks expected.

• A magnitude 5.1 quake hit Qiaojia County in Yunnan, China, prompting an emergency response posture and field teams to assess conditions.

• A magnitude 6.0 quake was recorded in northwestern Kashmir with a shallow, early estimate depth, a configuration that can amplify felt shaking near the epicenter.

The strongest “earthquake now” update: M6.0 offshore near New Caledonia

The largest quake in the latest cycle registered magnitude 6.0 southeast of the Loyalty Islands/New Caledonia region, occurring late on January 19 UTC (just after midnight local time in that region). With a shallow reported depth (around 10 km), this is the kind of earthquake that can generate sharp shaking near the epicenter, but the offshore location greatly reduces exposure.

Seismic agencies indicated no tsunami threat from this event. For offshore quakes, that line matters: tsunami messaging is driven less by magnitude alone and more by depth, seafloor displacement potential, and the quake’s mechanism. A shallow offshore quake can still be “no tsunami” if the rupture doesn’t significantly move the seabed vertically.

Southern Philippines: M5.2 near Sultan Kudarat, aftershocks expected

In the southern Philippines, a magnitude 5.2 tectonic earthquake struck around 3:00 a.m. local time on January 20, located offshore south of Kalamansig, Sultan Kudarat, with a depth around 10 km. Local intensity readings reached roughly “moderate” levels in parts of the area, with lighter shaking felt across a wider set of neighboring towns and cities.

Initial bulletins flagged that damage was not expected at this level, but aftershocks were highlighted as a realistic next step. Practically, that means communities often see a string of smaller quakes in the following hours or days. The most useful household action right now is to secure hazards (glass, shelves, hanging items) and keep a clear plan for moving to an open area if strong shaking returns.

Southwest China: M5.1 in Yunnan triggers response checks

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck Qiaojia County in Zhaotong City, Yunnan, on Monday evening local time (January 19), with a reported depth around 10 km. Strong tremors were felt in surrounding counties, and early updates indicated no immediate casualty reports while response teams moved to support local assessments.

An emergency response posture was activated to coordinate rapid inspection of buildings, roads, and lifeline infrastructure. In quakes of this size, the biggest near-term risk often comes from localized structural vulnerabilities, rockfalls, and cascading disruptions such as power issues or blocked roads in mountainous terrain.

Northwestern Kashmir: M6.0 recorded with shallow early depth estimate

A magnitude 6.0 earthquake was logged in northwestern Kashmir at 06:21 GMT on January 19, with an early depth estimate around 10 km and coordinates placing it in a region known for complex, active faulting. Shallow events are the ones that most often translate into stronger felt shaking near populated areas, even when magnitudes are similar.

In the first hours after a quake like this, the key watch points are aftershock frequency, any reports of landslides, and whether inspections uncover damage to older masonry or hillside construction.

A quick historical note helps explain why these locations keep appearing: the Pacific “Ring of Fire” concentrates plate boundaries and subduction zones that generate frequent offshore earthquakes, while the Himalayan region (including Kashmir) sits on a collision boundary where the Indian plate presses into Eurasia, steadily building strain that releases in earthquakes.

If you felt shaking in Egypt or the Eastern Mediterranean

If your “earthquake now” search is coming from Cairo or nearby, it’s possible to feel long-period waves from distant large quakes, and smaller offshore events in the Mediterranean or Red Sea can also be felt depending on depth and local soil conditions. Early quake data can shift as monitoring agencies refine solutions, so a “no big local quake” impression can change once smaller events are confirmed and published.

FAQ

Why do earthquake magnitudes change after the first alert?
Early automated solutions are revised as more seismic stations report, improving the calculation of magnitude, depth, and location.

Should I expect aftershocks after a 5.0–6.0 quake?
Yes. Aftershocks are common, especially in the first 24–72 hours, and can sometimes feel sharper if they’re shallower or closer.

What’s the safest action during shaking?
Drop, cover, and hold on. Move away from windows and unsecured objects, and avoid elevators.

Over the next day, the most important signals to track are aftershock patterns near the Philippines, Yunnan, and Kashmir, plus any updates from official monitoring agencies on intensity maps, inspection results, and safety advisories. If you tell me your city and what you felt (time, duration, whether objects rattled), I can narrow this to the most likely event window and what to watch next.