Magnitude 4.5 earthquake strikes near Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic

A very shallow magnitude 4.5 earthquake was reported early afternoon near Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.
According to the citizen-seismograph network of RaspberryShake, the quake hit on Sunday, November 16th, 2025, at 3:49 pm local time at a very shallow depth of 0.70 km. Shallow earthquakes are felt more strongly than deeper ones as they are closer to the surface. 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.
Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake was probably felt by many people in the area of the epicenter. It should not have caused significant damage, other than objects falling from shelves, broken windows, etc.
In Luperon (pop. 4,400) located 7 km from the epicenter, and Villa Isabela (pop. 3,900) 11 km away, the quake should have been felt as light shaking.
Weak shaking might have been felt in Esperanza (pop. 42,200) located 36 km from the epicenter, Puerto Plata (pop. 146,000) 38 km away, Rio Grande (pop. 20,200) 38 km away, Villa Bisono (pop. 33,100) 41 km away, Monte Llano (pop. 19,000) 49 km away, Santiago de los Caballeros (pop. 1,200,000) 61 km away, and Tamboril (pop. 23,300) 64 km away.
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.


Earthquake data:
Date & time: Nov 16, 2025 03:49 pm (Santo Domingo time) local time (16 Nov 2025 19:49 GMT)
Magnitude: 4.5
Depth: 0.70 km
Epicenter latitude / longitude: 19.91°N / 71.03°W (Luperon, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic)
Primary data source: RaspberryShake
https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquake/news/287080/Magnitude-45-earthquake-strikes-near-Puerto-Plata-Dominican-Republic.html