A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck 21 km east of Port-Olry, Vanuatu, at 02:24 UTC on Sunday, October 25, at a depth of 136.3 km, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said in its reviewed solution for event us6000u4rf. The epicentre was at 15.012°S, 167.269°E, near the northern coast of Espiritu Santo, the country's largest island, and the USGS issued a green PAGER alert, indicating a low likelihood of casualties and damage in its modelled estimate.

Source: USGS event us6000u4rf via EarthquakeToday, Oct 25, 2026

The German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) independently recorded the same event as magnitude 6.16 at a depth of 125 km (78 miles), Reuters reported. The two agencies' readings differ slightly, as is normal in the first hours after a quake, but agree on the location, timing and intermediate depth.

Source: Reuters — GFZ via Cruisin 929, Oct 25, 2026

There is no tsunami threat associated with this earthquake, based on its location and the available data, monitoring based on USGS data assessed. The intermediate depth — well below the surface — softens shaking at ground level compared with a shallow quake of the same size: USGS modelling put the strongest shaking at light intensity (IV), felt in Port-Olry and Luganville, some 57 km to the south. No casualties or damage were reported in the USGS and GFZ data available when this story was published.

Source: Watchers monitoring of USGS data, Oct 25, 2026

6.2USGS magnitude (GFZ recorded 6.16 for the same event)
136.3 kmDepth — intermediate, which spreads the energy before it reaches the surface
02:24 UTCOrigin time Sunday, October 25 — 1:24 p.m. local time in Vanuatu

The new shock comes a day after a shallow magnitude 6.9 earthquake and a 6.3 companion struck offshore northwest of Port-Olry, in the same seismically active zone. Read: Saturday's magnitude 6.9 Vanuatu earthquake

Vanuatu lies on the Pacific 'Ring of Fire', where the Australian Plate subducts beneath the Pacific Plate, and strong earthquakes are frequent: seismic catalogues record about 200 earthquakes of magnitude 6 or more within 300 km of this epicentre since 1976. Readers in coastal areas should follow official guidance from Vanuatu authorities, and the USGS figures may still be revised as more station data arrives.

Source: USGS data via Zenitmap, Oct 25, 2026

What we do not know yet

No casualty or damage figures had been reported in the agency data available at publish time, and a green alert is a modelled estimate, not a ground survey. This story will be treated as superseded if Vanuatu authorities report a materially different impact.