Strong M6.0 earthquake hits Sulawesi at intermediate depth, Indonesia
Image credit: Google, TW/SAM
A strong earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.0 hit near the coast of Sulawesi, Indonesia, at 16:58 UTC on January 19, 2020 (00:58 LT, January 20) at a depth of 118.1 km (73 miles). EMSC is reporting M6.1 at a depth of 138 km (85.7 miles).
The epicenter was located 111.8 km (69.3 miles) SE of Gorontalo (population 144 195), 146.7 km (90.9 miles) NE of Luwuk (population 47 778), 193.6 km (120.0 miles) SW of Tomohon (population 27 624), 199.7 km (123.8 miles) SW of Tondano (population 33 317), and 211.6 km (131.2 miles) SSW of Manado (population 451 893), Indonesia.
There are 170 000 people living within 100 km (62 miles).
2 487 000 people are estimated to have felt light shaking
The USGS issued a green alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. There is a low likelihood of casualties and damage.
Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are vulnerable to earthquake shaking, though resistant structures exist. The predominant vulnerable building types are unreinforced brick with concrete floor and precast concrete frame with wall construction.
Image credit: Google, TW/SAM
Estimated population exposure to earthquake shaking
Selected cities exposed
Regional seismicity
I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.
Commenting rules and guidelines
We value the thoughts and opinions of our readers and welcome healthy discussions on our website. In order to maintain a respectful and positive community, we ask that all commenters follow these rules.