Reported by EMSC13d ago
M2.1 earthquake in South Africa
Monday, September 14, 2026, 11:44:29 UTC · 25.232°S, 27.789°E
A magnitude 2.1 earthquake struck in South Africa on Monday, September 14, 2026, 11:44:29 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 2.1
- Minor · m
- Depth
- 10 km
- Shallow
- Reported by
- EMSC
- Agency SASN
- Nearest tracker
- 487 km
- from Maputo
Outlined circle: this earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
21 kg of TNT
That is about 1/706,872 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 22,387 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
10 km
from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Somali and African plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.
Depth: shallow
10 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 have not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 50 km since this event.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 30 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 5.712 km WNW of Westonaria, South AfricaMay 14, 1974 · 118 km S of this epicenter
- 5.55 km NNW of Orkney, South AfricaApril 7, 1977 · 220 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.43 km ESE of Orkney, South AfricaAugust 5, 2014 · 223 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.30 km NE of Orkney, South AfricaOctober 28, 1986 · 224 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.212 km SE of Orkney, South AfricaDecember 19, 1973 · 227 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.227 km N of Klerksdorp, South AfricaSeptember 30, 1973 · 192 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.25 km SSE of Orkney, South AfricaFebruary 10, 1997 · 227 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.25 km NNW of Klerksdorp, South AfricaJanuary 5, 1988 · 209 km SW of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 6 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 37 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1997M5.0
Avgold'S Hartebeestfontein Mine
21 Jul 1997 · 215 km away
15 deaths
- 1990M4.0
Charletonville
18 Oct 1990 · 136 km away
10 deaths
- 2018M2.1
West Rand
3 May 2018 · 133 km away
7 deaths
- 2005M4.3
Klerksdorp, Stilfontein
9 Mar 2005 · 212 km away
2 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 2009M3.5
Carletonville
6 Dec 2009 · 135 km away
2 deaths
- 2014M5.4
Orkney
5 Aug 2014 · 223 km away · intensity VII
1 death$40 million damage
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.