Reported by EMSC21d ago
M2.5 earthquake in Albania
Saturday, September 5, 2026, 23:01:11 UTC · 41.031°N, 19.718°E
A magnitude 2.5 earthquake struck in Albania on Saturday, September 5, 2026, 23:01:11 UTC, at a depth of 15.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 2.5
- Minor · ml
- Depth
- 15 km
- Shallow
- Reported by
- EMSC
- Agency IGEO
- Nearest tracker
- 34 km
- from Tirana
Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
85 kg of TNT
That is about 1/177,558 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 5,623 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
253 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Eurasian and African plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.
Depth: shallow
15 km
Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.
After the main event
Aftershocks within 50 km
USGS and EMSC list 5 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km since this event; the largest was M2.5 on September 16, 2026. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 332 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 6.96 km E of Stari Bar, MontenegroApril 15, 1979 · 126 km N of this epicenter
- 6.86 km W of Stara Kresna, BulgariaApril 4, 1904 · 295 km E of this epicenter
- 6.76 km NW of Lukovo, North MacedoniaNovember 30, 1967 · 80 km NE of this epicenter
- 6.77 km NE of Anávra, GreeceApril 30, 1954 · 289 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.73 km SW of Kuklis, North MacedoniaMarch 8, 1931 · 248 km E of this epicenter
- 6.635 km NW of Itháki, GreeceApril 22, 1948 · 279 km S of this epicenter
- 6.617 km NNW of Bilisht, AlbaniaFebruary 18, 1911 · 103 km E of this epicenter
- 6.610 km W of Aianí, GreeceMay 13, 1995 · 194 km SE of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 124 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 4,899 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1851M6.6
Vlore (Valona),Berat; Turkey
12 Oct 1851 · 59 km away · intensity XI
2,000 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)tsunami
- 1963M6.0
Macedonia: Skopje
26 Jul 1963 · 177 km away · intensity X
1,070 deaths$1.0 billion damage
- 1851
Berat
17 Oct 1851 · 59 km away · intensity X
400 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1920M6.2
Tepelene, Dragoti, Peshtani, Maricaj
26 Nov 1920 · 95 km away · intensity XI
200 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)
- 1979M6.9
Montenegro
15 Apr 1979 · 126 km away · intensity IX
131 deaths$2.7 billion damagetsunami
- 1905M6.6
Shkoder
1 Jun 1905 · 119 km away · intensity X
120 deaths$24 million damage
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.