The U.S. Geological Survey reported that a 7.8 magnitude quake struck close to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky Thursday morning.

At 18:58 UTC (05:58 local time), the region was rocked by a tremor. The earthquake hit at a depth of 27 km, with its epicenter approximately 138 km east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.

The National Tsunami Center issued a Tsunami statement related to the quake, please visit tsunami.gov for the latest information.

Did you feel it?

If you noticed the tremor, you can share your observations using the USGS Felt Report form. So far, the agency has collected 26 online responses from individuals indicating that they felt the earthquake. According to the USGS DYFI report, strong to very strong shaking was recorded and residents in cities like Jelizovo and Mohovaja reported experiencing the earthquake.

Impact and estimated losses

Orange alert for economic losses. Significant damage is likely and the disaster is potentially widespread. Estimated economic losses are less than 1% of GDP of Russia. Past events with this alert level have required a regional or national level response. Green alert for shaking-related fatalities. There is a low likelihood of casualties. Recent earthquakes in this area have caused secondary hazards such as tsunamis that might have contributed to losses.

Structure information summary
Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are resistant to earthquake shaking, though vulnerable structures exist. The predominant vulnerable building types are adobe block and unreinforced brick with mud construction.

Earthquakes past week

Last week, there have been 16 quakes of magnitude 2.5 or greater centered nearby, three of them larger than magnitude 7. The largest one was a 7.7 earthquake that hit the same region five days ago.

Detailed tectonic summary

This September 18, 2025, M7.8 earthquake that occurred east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia is an aftershock of the M8.8 Kamchatka Peninsula earthquake that struck on July 29, 2025. The aftershock resulted from shallow reverse faulting. As of its occurrence, the September 18, 2025, event is the largest aftershock recorded following the M8.8 mainshock, exceeding a nearby M7.4 aftershock that occurred on September 13. At the earthquake’s location, the Pacific Plate is moving west-northwest relative to the North American Plate at a rate of approximately 80 mm/year. The earthquake’s location and faulting mechanism are consistent with faulting along the subduction zone plate interface of the Kuril-Kamchatka arc.

Although earthquakes are often represented as points on maps, events of this magnitude are better described as slip across a broad fault area. Reverse faulting earthquakes of this size typically involve rupture dimensions of approximately 100 km in length and 50 km in width.

Further details about the seismotectonic context of this sequence are available on the Main Event Page and through an interactive geonarrative.

Source: The U.S. Geological Survey