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New Zealand · Southland

M3.9 Earthquake near Fiordland Community, Southland (New Zealand)

UTC time: 2026-07-16 09:51:51 UTC Local time: —
Magnitude
M3.9
Depth
48.7 km
Source
EMSC

Southland · Fiordland Community

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About this earthquake

On July 16, 2026 at 09:51 UTC, a magnitude M3.9 earthquake occurred near Fiordland Community, Southland (New Zealand). With a focal depth of about 49 km, this was a shallow earthquake, whose shaking is usually felt more strongly at the surface. Shaking of this size is frequently noticed but usually harmless.

The event was recorded by EMSC. New Zealand: over the past 24 hours, QuakeMap24 logged 5 earthquakes, the strongest at M4.0.

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 48.7 km (Shallow) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 48.7 km
Shallow
48.7 km
48.7 km — shallower than the regional average (70.9 km)
Regional average: 70.9 km
Why depth matters

Shallow quakes release energy near the surface — shaking is felt more strongly and damage potential is higher.

Depth classes per USGS

Southland

Context for this earthquake

05 Oct 2025 – 05 Oct 2026 · M ≥ 3.0 · 147 Catalogue entries

Sufficiently reliable matching data are not currently available for a direct comparison. The area profile shows the available records and their limitations.

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View earthquake KPIs, strongest and latest events, and averages for this country.

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