5.2

M5.2 Earthquake 11 km NW of San Fernando, Philippines — May 24, 2025

2025-05-24 02:36:10 UTC (2025-05-24) · approx. 10:36 AM UTC+8 local

Felt by 27 people across nearby locations.

MagnitudeM5.2(mww)
Time02:36 UTC≈ 10:36 AM UTC+8
Depth35.0 kmshallow crustal
Coordinates16.693°, 120.239°
Felt by27DYFI responses
Status✓ Reviewed by USGS

On May 24, 2025 at 02:36 UTC, a magnitude 5.2 shallow crustal earthquake struck 11 km NW of San Fernando, Philippines, at a depth of 35.0 km and coordinates 16.6932°, 120.2389°. This earthquake was detected by 85 seismic stations with good location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 427, placing it among routine seismic activity.

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.

The epicenter is located in Philippines, a region characterized by the Manila Trench and Philippine Trench subduction systems, where the Philippine Sea Plate overrides the Eurasian Plate. The nearest mapped fault system is the Philippine Fault. View all earthquakes in Philippines.

Learn more: Magnitude scale · Aftershock sequences

Map showing earthquake epicenter at 16.69°, 120.24°

Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking

Aggregated felt-report intensity from 27 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.

USGS DYFI community-reported intensity map for the M5.2 earthquake near 11 km NW of San Fernando, Philippines

Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report

Earthquake Details

Magnitude
5.2 mww
Depth
35.0 km
shallow crustal
Location
16.6932°N
120.2389°E
Felt Reports
27
DYFI responses
Community Intensity
4.1
CDI from reports

Technical Information

Event ID
us7000q18d
Event Type
earthquake
Status
✓ Reviewed
Significance
427
Stations Used
85
Azimuthal Gap
96.0°
Min Station Distance
6.144°
RMS Residual
0.74 sec
Last Updated
2025-08-13 15:14:31 UTC

Nearby Earthquakes (Last 7 Days)

4.6
18 km SSE of Talisay, Philippines
5 days ago · 10.0 km deep

Common Questions

How strong was the magnitude 5.2 earthquake near San Fernando, Philippines?

The magnitude 5.2 earthquake that struck 11 km NW of San Fernando, Philippines on May 24, 2025 at 02:36 UTC had a depth of 35.0 km. For context, this was a moderate earthquake that could be widely felt.

Where did the earthquake occur?

The earthquake epicenter was located at 16.6932°, 120.2389°, which is 11 km NW of San Fernando, Philippines. View all earthquakes in Philippines.

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.

Has Philippines had earthquakes this big before?

The largest recorded earthquake in Philippines was the M8.0 Mindanao earthquake of August 17, 1976. Today's magnitude 5.2 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.

Actions

View on USGSDid You Feel It?

Location

Philippines
View all Philippines earthquakes

Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us7000q18d). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.

Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2025, May 24, 2025). M5.2 Earthquake 11 km NW of San Fernando, Philippines — May 24, 2025. Retrieved August 13, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us7000q18d/