QuakeScout
Magnitude3.6

Reported by EMSC3d ago

M3.6 earthquake in Philippine Islands Region

Wednesday, September 23, 2026, 22:56:44 UTC · 7.750°N, 127.150°E

A magnitude 3.6 earthquake struck in Philippine Islands Region on Wednesday, September 23, 2026, 22:56:44 UTC, at a depth of 26.0 km (shallow).

Magnitude
3.6
Minor · m
Depth
26 km
Shallow
Reported by
EMSC
Agency PIVS
Nearest tracker
197 km
from Davao

Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

4 tons of TNT

That is about 1/3,975 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 126 times more energy.

Tectonic setting

8 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the Philippine Sea and Sunda plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.

Depth: shallow

26 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 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km since this event; the largest was M3.3 on September 24, 2026. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

M31h6h1d3dMainshock M3.6
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 3.0Mindanao, Philippines1d ago · 48 km NW of this epicenter
  2. 3.3Philippine Islands Region3d ago · 24 km NW of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 1,913 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 8.11924 Mindanao, Philippines EarthquakeApril 14, 1924 · 166 km SW of this epicenter
  2. 8.01972 Mindanao, Philippines EarthquakeDecember 2, 1972 · 156 km S of this epicenter
  3. 7.947 km ESE of Kalbay, PhilippinesMarch 14, 1913 · 282 km SW of this epicenter
  4. 7.877 km E of Baculin, PhilippinesMay 25, 1943 · 44 km S of this epicenter
  5. 7.774 km ENE of Barcelona, PhilippinesJuly 12, 1911 · 83 km N of this epicenter
  6. 7.619 km E of Gamut, PhilippinesDecember 2, 2023 · 118 km NW of this epicenter
  7. 7.637 km ENE of Barcelona, PhilippinesDecember 15, 1989 · 80 km NW of this epicenter
  8. 7.521 km SE of Lukatan, PhilippinesJanuary 1, 2001 · 114 km SW of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 51 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 205 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1913M7.8

    Sangihe Island

    14 Mar 1913 · 290 km away · intensity IX

    138 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)tsunami

  2. 2019M6.8

    Mindanao: Davao

    15 Dec 2019 · 245 km away

    13 deathsExtreme damage ($25M+)

  3. 2019M6.6

    Mindanao: Cotabato, Davao

    29 Oct 2019 · 255 km away

    13 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

  4. 2025M7.4

    Mindanao

    10 Oct 2025 · 72 km away · intensity VI

    10 deaths$6 million damagetsunami

  5. 2019M6.5

    Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat

    31 Oct 2019 · 239 km away

    10 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)

  6. 2019M6.4

    Mindanao: Cotabato, Davao

    16 Oct 2019 · 263 km away · intensity VII

    7 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

Nearby trackers

Closest city pages