6.0 earthquake hits Hawaii coast, triggers rockslides

1 min readUpdated May 26, 2026

A 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck south of Honaunau-Napoopoo on Hawaii's Big Island late Friday, triggering rockslides, structural damage, and power outages across the South Kona area, according to ABC News.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the epicenter was located approximately 3.7 miles east-southeast of Honaunau-Napoopoo, west of Mauna Loa, with shaking beginning at 9:46 p.m. local time. Officials reported no apparent effects on Mauna Loa or Kīlauea, even as tremors were widely felt throughout the island chain.

Around 500 customers served by Hawaiian Electric Company lost power, with fallen utility lines blamed for outages concentrated in the South Kona area. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center reported no tsunami threat.

The earthquake comes as Kīlauea, one of the world's most active volcanoes, was already showing signs of elevated unrest. The USGS projected, based on modeling, that episode 48 in the ongoing eruption sequence was on track to get underway sometime between Sunday and Tuesday, according to ABC News. A code yellow designation was assigned to Kīlauea by the USGS, reflecting activity above typical background levels; light was observed emanating from vents inside the Halemaʻumaʻu crater, and minor seismic tremors persisted even as the eruption remained on pause. Since the eruption sequence kicked off in December 2024, geologists have recorded dozens of individual episodes, with certain events sending lava fountains as high as 1,500 feet into the air.

Hawaii's Big Island shaken by 6.0 earthquake, triggering rockslides and outages

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