A 4.4-magnitude earthquake struck the waters off Batu Pahat, Johor, at 4.55pm on 22 September, with tremors felt in the district and surrounding areas.
The Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) said the epicentre was located 27km southwest of Batu Pahat at a depth of 10km, NST reported. The department said it would continue to monitor the situation and confirmed there is no tsunami threat to Malaysia.
Thursday’s quake is the strongest recorded near Batu Pahat in recent years and the latest in a series of seismic events in the area. On 25 August, a 3.1-magnitude tremor struck 18km southwest of the district at a depth of 10km, according to The Star. That quake was the second detected off Batu Pahat in two months, following a 3.3-magnitude earthquake recorded on 21 June.
Earlier this year, a 3.2-magnitude quake hit the same offshore region on 14 March. The string of tremors has renewed focus on seismic activity in the Strait of Malacca, where the Batu Pahat district sits along the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia.
A 4.4-magnitude earthquake is classified as “light” on the Richter scale and can be felt by many people indoors, with dishes and windows potentially disturbed. The shallow depth of 10km means the shaking would have been more noticeable at the surface compared with deeper quakes of similar magnitude.
MetMalaysia’s guidance notes that Peninsular Malaysia can experience local earthquakes associated with active faults, while tremors along the west coast can also originate from major earthquakes in Sumatra and the Andaman Sea. The department has recorded at least six earthquakes in the Batu Pahat offshore area since August 2025.
The previous strongest earthquake in the broader Johor region was a 4.4-magnitude quake near Kulai on 18 March, which occurred at a much greater depth of 750km. There were no reports of casualties or major damage from that event.
MetMalaysia advises residents in affected areas to stay calm and follow safety guidelines. Earthquakes of this magnitude do not typically cause structural damage but may cause alarm in areas unaccustomed to seismic activity. Residents who felt the tremors can report their experience through MetMalaysia’s official channels.
