Strong and shallow M6.0 earthquake hits southeast of Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.0 hit southeast of Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia at 13:02 UTC on January 19, 2026. The agency is reporting a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). EMSC is reporting the same magnitude and depth.
Epicenter of M6.0 earthquake in southeast of Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia on January 19, 2026. Credit: TW/SAM, Google
The epicenter was located 261 km (162 miles) ESE of Tadine (population 7 490), 333 km (207 miles) SSE of Isangel (population 1 437), and 348 km (217 miles) ESE of Wé (population 10 375), New Caledonia.
There is no tsunami threat from this earthquake.
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 highly vulnerable to earthquake shaking, though some resistant structures exist. The predominant vulnerable building types are unknown/miscellaneous types and wood construction.
Estimated population exposure to earthquake shaking
Regional seismicity
References:
1 M6.0 earthquake southeast of Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia – USGS – January 19, 2026
2 M6.0 earthquake southeast of Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia – EMSC – January 19, 2026
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.
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