Reported by EMSC22h ago
M2.4 earthquake in South Africa
Saturday, September 26, 2026, 22:02:16 UTC · 26.447°S, 27.471°E
A magnitude 2.4 earthquake struck in South Africa on Saturday, September 26, 2026, 22:02:16 UTC, at a depth of 10.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 2.4
- Minor · m
- Depth
- 10 km
- Shallow
- Reported by
- EMSC
- Agency SASN
- Nearest tracker
- 512 km
- from Maputo
Outlined circle: this earthquake
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
60 kg of TNT
That is about 1/250,808 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 7,943 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
7 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 40 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 6.128 km N of Maputsoe, LesothoFebruary 20, 1912 · 246 km S of this epicenter
- 5.712 km WNW of Westonaria, South AfricaMay 14, 1974 · 20 km N of this epicenter
- 5.710 km WNW of Welkom, South AfricaApril 22, 1999 · 187 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.66 km S of Welkom, South AfricaOctober 30, 1994 · 191 km S of this epicenter
- 5.55 km NNW of Orkney, South AfricaApril 7, 1977 · 97 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.50 km S of Welkom, South AfricaJanuary 25, 1989 · 186 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.43 km ESE of Orkney, South AfricaAugust 5, 2014 · 97 km SW of this epicenter
- 5.35 km SSE of Welkom, South AfricaJune 6, 1992 · 189 km S of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 8 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 43 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1997M5.0
Avgold'S Hartebeestfontein Mine
21 Jul 1997 · 96 km away
15 deaths
- 1990M4.0
Charletonville
18 Oct 1990 · 14 km away
10 deaths
- 2018M2.1
West Rand
3 May 2018 · 6 km away
7 deaths
- 1976M5.2
South Africa
8 Dec 1976 · 186 km away
4 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 2005M4.3
Klerksdorp, Stilfontein
9 Mar 2005 · 85 km away
2 deathsModerate damage ($1–5M)
- 1990M4.2
Welkom
26 Sep 1990 · 189 km away
2 deathsLimited damage (under $1M)
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.