Moderate magnitude 4.2 earthquake at 260 km depth19 Sep 20:58 UTC: First to report: GFZ after 3 minutes.19 Sep 21:02: Magnitude recalculated from 4.4 to 4.2. Epicenter location corrected by 9.8 km (6.1 mi) towards WSW.Update Sat, 19 Sep 2026, 21:00Moderate 4.4 quake hits near Milazzo, Province of Messina, Sicily, ItalyAn intermediate to deep magnitude 4.4 earthquake was reported late at night near Milazzo, Province of Messina, Sicily, Italy.According to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), the quake hit on Saturday, September 19th, 2026, at 10:55 pm local time at an intermediate to considerable depth of 262. km. The strength of the earthquake may have been tempered by its relative great depth below the surface, which makes it feel weaker in absolute terms. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.Our monitoring service identified a second report from the citizen-seismograph network of RaspberryShake which listed the quake at magnitude 4.4 as well.According to preliminary calculations, we do not expect that the quake was felt by many people and did not cause any damage. In Malfa (pop. 800, 26 km away), Canneto (pop. 2,100, 37 km away), Lipari (pop. 4,300, 40 km away), Patti (pop. 9,300, 75 km away), Capo d'Orlando (pop. 12,000, 75 km away), Milazzo (pop. 31,800, 75 km away), Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto (pop. 34,600, 81 km away), and Messina (pop. 219,900, 93 km away), the quake was probably not felt.VolcanoDiscovery will automatically update magnitude and depth if these change and follow up if other significant news about the quake become available. If you're in the area, please send us your experience through our reporting mechanism, either online or via our mobile app. This will help us provide more first-hand updates to anyone around the globe who wants to know more about this quake.If you were or still are in this area during the quake help others with your feedback and report it here.Download the Volcanoes & Earthquakes app and get one of the fastest seismic alerts online: Android | iOSI didn't feel itI felt this quakeEarthquake detailsDate & timeSep 19, 2026 20:55:32 UTC - Local time at epicenterSaturday, Sep 19, 2026, at 09:55 pm (GMT +1)StatusconfirmedMagnitude4.20Depth260 kmEpicenter latitude / longitude38.79°N / 14.73°EProvince of Messina, Sicily, ItalySeismic antipode38.79°S / 165.27°WShaking intensityNot feltPrimary data sourceGFZ (German Research Centre for Geosciences)Nearest volcanoLipari (37 km / 23 mi)Weather at epicenter at time of quakeOvercast Clouds 24.3°C (76 F), humidity: 72%, wind: 6 m/s (12 kts) from NWEstimated seismic energy released1.3 x 1011 joules (35 megawatt hours, equivalent to 30.1 tons of TNT) | equivalent to ONE quake of magnitude 4.2 | about seismic energy12 minutes ago reported feltSep 19, 2026 20:55 GMT / Sep 19, 2026 09:55 pm (GMT +1)Lat / Lng: 38.79 / 14.73: Sicily, ItalySource: GFZOther sources: RaspberryShake: 4.2 / 260 km, NOA: 3.9 / 39 kmDetail info | Read user reports | You felt it? - Report it!';storedMarkers.push(['quake-23376138',38.79000,14.73000,'12 minutes ago: Mag. 4.2, Sicily, Italy',html,'quakes-6-24.png',25,25,12,12,125]); function mkRep(id,notFelt){var nFelt=notFelt||false;var src="https://www.volcanoesandearthquakes.com/app/earthquake-report.php?quakeId="+id;if(nFelt==true){src+="¬Felt=true";}window.open(src,"","status=0,toolbar=0,location=0,directories=0,menubar=0,resizable=1,scrollbars=1,height=400,width=350");} function locationHashChanged(e){-1!=e.oldURL.indexOf("#popupMap")&&closePopup()} window.onhashchange = locationHashChanged; function comment(e){var t=e.parentNode,a=(t.dataset.id,document.getElementById("commentForm"));"none"==a.style.display?(t.appendChild(a),a.style.display="block"):a.style.display="none"}function sendComment(e){var t=e.parentNode,a=t.parentNode.dataset.id,n=document.getElementById("commentContent"),p=n.value.trim();if(p){var o="id="+a+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId;o+="&comment="+decodeURIComponent(p),mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",o,function(e){e.responseText;alert("Thank you for submitting your comment!"),t.style.display="none",n.value=""})}}function flagReport(e){var t=e.parentNode.dataset.id;if(confirm("Report this as inappropriate?")){var a="id="+t+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId+"&flagAsInappropriate=1";mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",a,function(t){var a=t.responseText;alert(a),e.style.display="none"})}}function likeReport(e){var t="id="+e.parentNode.dataset.id+"&quakeId="+thisQuakeId+"&like=1";mkRequest("//reports.volcanodiscovery.com/app/eqReportComment.php","post",t,function(t){t.responseText;e.style.opacity=.5})}]]>[smaller] [bigger]Most recent quakes Top 20 past 24 hrs Quakes in Sicily SicilyNearby placesThe closest larger town near the epicenter is Pollara, a town with 83 inhabitants in Italy, in 25 km (15 mi) distance to the south, but it is unlikely that the quake was felt there. DistancePlaceMax. shaking intensity(*)RegionCountry25 km (15 mi)S of epicenterPollara(pop: 83)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly29 km (18 mi)SW of epicenterFilicudi Porto(pop: 307)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly34 km (21 mi)SE of epicenterPanarea(pop: 320)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly41 km (25 mi)SE of epicenterLipari(pop: 4,260)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly43 km (27 mi)SW of epicenterAlicudi Porto(pop: 105)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly44 km (27 mi)E of epicenterStromboli(pop: 639)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly72 km (45 mi)S of epicenterCapo d'Orlando(pop: 12,000)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly74 km (46 mi)S of epicenterPatti(pop: 9,320)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly77 km (48 mi)SE of epicenterMilazzo(pop: 31,800)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly79 km (49 mi)S of epicenterSinagra(pop: 1,720)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly81 km (50 mi)S of epicenterFalcone(pop: 2,510)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly83 km (52 mi)SE of epicenterBarcellona Pozzo di Gotto(pop: 34,600)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly87 km (54 mi)SE of epicenterVillafranca Tirrena(pop: 8,120)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly88 km (55 mi)SE of epicenterSan Pier Niceto(pop: 1,700)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly89 km (55 mi)SE of epicenterSparta'(pop: 1,320)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly98 km (61 mi)SE of epicenterMessina(pop: 219,900)I: Not feltSicilyItaly101 km (63 mi)SE of epicenterAltolia(pop: 354)I: Not feltProvince of Messina, SicilyItaly101 km (63 mi)SE of epicenterVilla San Giovanni(pop: 13,700)I: Not feltProvincia di Reggio Calabria, CalabriaItaly141 km (87 mi)SW of epicenterPalermo(pop: 648,300)I: Not feltSicilyItaly393 km (244 mi)NW of epicenterRome(pop: 2,318,900)I: Not feltLazioItalyNotes:(*) Shaking intensity according to the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale (MMI) and estimated using seismic models.User-reports for this quake (1)So far, we have received 1 report for this quake. This section is being updated as new data comes in.User reports estimate the perceived ground shaking intensity according to the MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity) scale.Translate162.7 km SW of epicenter [Map] / not felt (reported through our app)What is Intensity and the Mercalli Intensity Scale?The amount of shaking that occurs on the surface due to an earthquake is called the intensity. It is commonly measured on the so-called Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale (MMI) ranging from 1 (not felt) to 10 (extreme shaking), and given in Roman numerals as I,II,...IX, X, and often displayed with color codes ranging from light blue to dark red.Earthquake intensity depends mainly on the magnitude and depth of the quake as well as the distance from the epicenter: The further away, the less shaking intensity occurs.Read more about the MMI scale!Number of reports by intensityShaking intensityNumber of reportsMin-Max distance from epicenter (*)Average distance (*)I: Not felt1162–162 km (101–101 mi)162 km (101 mi)Notes(*) Reports are filtered to exclude those that are likely highly inaccurate or esaggerated.Only reports with latitude/longitude coordinate positions given (1 in total) could be used for geographic statistics.Get the Android appCompare Quake DataData for the same earthquake as reported by different agenciesThe more agencies report about the same quake and post similar data, the more confidence you can have in the data. It takes normally up to a few hours until earthquake parameters are calculated with near-optimum precision.MagDepthTime GMT2026-09-19EpicenterAgency4.2260 km162 mi20:55:32.22Sicily, ItalyGFZ (German Research Centre for Geosciences)4.2260 km162 mi20:55:32Sicily, Italy0 km (0 mi) epicenter difference with GFZRaspberryShake (RaspberryShake)3.939 km24 mi20:55:44.53353 Km WSW from Othonoi80 km (50 mi) epicenter difference with GFZNOA (National Observatory of Athens)Aftershocks for this quakeNo aftershocks have been recorded so far. When aftershocks are detected, we will update this section.What are aftershocks?Larger earthquakes (above magnitude 5 or so) such as this one are usually followed by smaller ones known as aftershocks that occur in the same area during the days, weeks, months or even years after the main shock.[More info]What about this quake?Based on its magnitude, the fault that was active during the quake likely ruptured beneath a surface area of approximately 2 km2 (1 square miles) as a first-order estimate. The length of the rupture zone thus was probably around 2 km (1 mi).[More info]Recorded aftershocks, latest first (0 quake)Sep 19, 2026 09:55 pm (GMT +1)12 minutes ago4.2260 km0 km - This quakeTyrrhenian Sea, 26 km N of Isola Salina Island, Sicily, ItalyMain Shock (this quake)MoreMap of aftershocksEarthquake statisticsAverage number of earthquakesBased on data from the past 56 years and our earthquake archive back to 1900, there are about 749 quakes on average per year in the area near the epicenter of this quake (within 100 km/61 mi):Mag. 7 or higher: 0.02 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 62.5 years)Mag. 6 or higher: 0.05 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 20.8 years)Mag. 5 or higher: 0.33 quakes per year (or 1 quake every 3 years)Mag. 4 or higher: 3.7 quakes per yearMag. 3 or higher: 30 quakes per yearMag. 2 or higher: 286 quakes per year (or 23.8 quakes per month)Mag. 1 or higher: 683 quakes per year (or 57 quakes per month)The area where this quake occurred has a high level of seismic activity. It has had at least 2 quakes above magnitude 7 since 1900, which suggests that larger earthquakes of this size occur infrequently, probably on average approximately every 60 to 65 years.Number of quakes per yearPrevious quakes in the same area of this earthquake