Strong and shallow M6.3 earthquake hits southeast of the Loyalty Islands
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.3 struck southeast of the Loyalty Islands at 14:45 UTC on July 13, 2026. The agency is reporting a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). EMSC is reporting the same magnitude and depth.
Epicenter of M6.3 earthquake in southeast of the Loyalty Islands on July 13, 2026. Credit: TW/SAM, Google
The epicenter was located 400 km (248 miles) ESE of Tadine (population 7 492), Caledonia, and 429 km (267 miles) SSE of Isangel (population 1 437), Vanuatu.
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 informal structures made of metal, timber and galvanized iron, as well as wood construction. No estimated GDP loss data are available.
Estimated population exposure to earthquake shaking
Regional seismicity
References:
1 M6.3 earthquake southeast of the Loyalty Islands – USGS – July 13, 2026
2 M6.3 earthquake southeast of the Loyalty Islands – EMSC – July 13, 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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