M5.2 Earthquake 89 km W of Brandvlei, South Africa — December 22, 2024
2024-12-22 00:51:05 UTC (2024-12-22) · approx. 1:51 AM UTC+1 local
Felt by 444 people across surrounding communities.
On December 22, 2024 at 00:51 UTC, a magnitude 5.2 shallow crustal earthquake struck 89 km W of Brandvlei, South Africa, at a depth of 10.0 km and coordinates -30.3810°, 19.5557°. This earthquake was detected by 78 seismic stations with excellent location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 656, making it a moderate-impact event.
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 5.2 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 951 metric tons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 2.3 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 444 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report
Earthquake Details
19.5557°E
Technical Information
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 5.2 earthquake near Brandvlei, South Africa?
The magnitude 5.2 earthquake that struck 89 km W of Brandvlei, South Africa on December 22, 2024 at 00:51 UTC had a depth of 10.0 km. For context, this was a moderate earthquake that could be widely felt.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at -30.3810°, 19.5557°, which is 89 km W of Brandvlei, South Africa.
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 5.2 earthquakes can continue for days to weeks and gradually diminish over time.
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us7000p0n9). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2024, December 22, 2024). M5.2 Earthquake 89 km W of Brandvlei, South Africa — December 22, 2024. Retrieved February 27, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us7000p0n9/