Mapped: M7.8 Earthquake Strikes Off Southern Mindanao, Triggering a Tsunami

A major magnitude-7.8 earthquake struck off the coast of southern Mindanao in the Philippines late on 7 June 2026, generating tsunami waves of around a metre and shaking buildings across the southern provinces. According to the US Geological Survey (USGS), the quake hit at 23:37 UTC on 7 June (07:37 local time on 8 June) at a depth of about 55 km; the European agency EMSC also measured it at magnitude 7.8.

The map below shows the epicentre — offshore to the south of General Santos, near Sarangani — together with the powerful aftershock sequence that followed in the hours afterwards. This is a developing event, and figures for damage and casualties are still being assessed.

What happened

The earthquake struck in the Celebes Sea just south of Mindanao, the largest island in the southern Philippines. The USGS reported a magnitude of 7.8 at a depth of 55.2 km; EMSC put the depth slightly shallower, at about 45 km. A quake of this size is capable of serious damage, and its moderate depth and offshore location are what allowed it to disturb the sea and generate a tsunami.

The tsunami

PHIVOLCS — the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology — said its land-based tsunami stations recorded waves of about 1 metre (3 feet) in Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani, with smaller waves seen in at least one other province. A tsunami warning was issued for several coastal provinces of Mindanao, and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. directed government agencies to respond immediately, with the Office of Civil Defense and the national disaster agency (NDRRMC) coordinating the response. A one-metre wave is far smaller than the catastrophic tsunamis of 2004 or 2011, but it is still enough to be dangerous along the immediate coast.

Damage and impact

In General Santos, the nearest major city, early reports from Reuters and AP described strong shaking that knocked over furniture and damaged televisions and appliances, with residents leaving their homes as aftershocks continued. The city disaster office said at least one small commercial building was damaged and that authorities were assessing reports of injuries. As of the first hours after the quake, no death toll had been officially confirmed — a picture that may change as assessment teams reach the affected areas. We will update this page as verified figures emerge.

A fierce aftershock sequence

Big earthquakes are always followed by aftershocks, and this one was no exception. Within about an hour and a half of the mainshock, the USGS had logged aftershocks of magnitude 6.5, 6.0 and 6.0 — quakes that would each be major news on their own — followed by a steady run of magnitude-5 tremors clustered just south of Sarangani. Sequences like this can continue for days or weeks and pose a real danger to structures already weakened by the first shock, which is why residents were urged to stay away from damaged buildings.

Explore the earthquakes: interactive map

Use the interactive map below to zoom in and out and tap any circle for its magnitude, depth and time. The large red circle is the M7.8 mainshock; the orange circles are the aftershocks, sized by magnitude.

Why southern Mindanao is so earthquake-prone

The southern Philippines sits at one of the most complex tectonic crossroads on the planet, where the Philippine Sea Plate, the Sunda Plate and the small Molucca Sea plates collide along the Pacific Ring of Fire. Offshore trenches — including the Cotabato and Philippine trenches — mark where one slab of ocean floor is forced beneath another, storing the strain that is released in earthquakes like this one. Mindanao has a long history of powerful quakes, including a devastating M8.1 event in 1976 that killed thousands, so seismologists watch the region closely.

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