Daily Earthquakes, Storms, Fires & Floods Report — October 24, 2026

By Paul Harrison, Orbis Weather · Saturday, October 24, 2026

At a glance

Record river flooding in the US Four Corners led the 24 hours from 7:20 a.m. EDT Friday, Oct 23, to 7:20 a.m. EDT Saturday, Oct 24 (11:20 UTC to 11:20 UTC).

• Floods: the San Juan River set a record at Farmington, New Mexico, and about 1,500 residences were evacuated in San Juan County.
• Storms: Champi weakened to a tropical storm after leaving one dead and 527 injured in Taiwan; Hurricane Vance stays off Mexico.
• Earthquakes: a magnitude 6.9 off northern Vanuatu began a strong aftershock sequence, with a brief tsunami threat and no damage reported.
• Fires: US activity is light, at Preparedness Level 1.
• Also today: a Bay of Bengal low is forecast to become a cyclone by Oct 26; Whakaari/White Island is at alert level 3.

National weather services and local authorities issue the official warnings; follow their instructions.

Earthquakes

A magnitude 6.9 earthquake off northern Vanuatu set off a long sequence of strong aftershocks, but no damage or injuries were reported. USGS listed 45 earthquakes of magnitude 4.5 or greater in the window; the ten largest are below.

What stands out

• Vanuatu sequence. The magnitude 6.9 struck at 02:31 UTC, about 200 km (124 mi) west of Sola in the Banks Islands. USGS first put it at 7.2. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center warned of possible hazardous waves within 300 km (186 mi), then said at 03:28 UTC the threat had passed (The Watchers). 1News reported “no immediate reports of damage or casualties” (1News). 29 of the day’s 45 events were in Vanuatu.
• Tibet aftershocks. Five events of 4.5 to 5.3 near Nagqu followed the magnitude 7.0 earthquake there on Oct 22 (below).
• Italy. A magnitude 5.2 struck at 13:55 UTC on Oct 23, 50 km (31 mi) WNW of Malfa in the Aeolian Islands, with a 4.7 nearby later. No damage was reported in the pages checked.

Just outside the window: a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit Baqen County, Nagqu, in Tibet (Xizang) at 14:33 UTC on Oct 22. Nagqu officials reported 16 dead and 76 injured as of 13:00 local time on Oct 23 (The Watchers); AP gave 16 dead and 32 injured (1News/AP).

USGS counted 231 earthquakes of all sizes worldwide in the window. Catalog: USGS search, M4.5+, searched at 11:21 UTC on Oct 24.

Storms

Typhoon Champi weakened to a tropical storm after a damaging pass east of Taiwan, and no other active storm threatens land within the next day. Hurricane Vance stays offshore of Mexico, and In-fa is strengthening far out in the western Pacific. The Atlantic and Central Pacific are quiet.

Champi: Taiwan and southern Japan

Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration lifted its land warning at 2:30 p.m. Saturday and expected to lift the sea warning Saturday evening or night (Focus Taiwan). The figures above are from the 2 p.m. CWA update; the newest bulletin replaces them.

• Toll. Taiwan’s Central Emergency Operations Center reported one dead and 527 injured as of Saturday morning (Focus Taiwan). The death was a man swept away by waves in Pingtung County. AP earlier gave 350 injured as of Friday night (ABC News/AP).
• Rain. The Taipingshan station passed 500 mm (19.7 in) by 7 p.m. Friday, which the CWA called “the extremely torrential rain level” (Taipei Times).
• Power and travel. AP, citing United Daily News, said 280,000 households lost power, with 80% restored by Saturday morning. Taiwan Power Co. figures in the Taipei Times were lower, at 77,498 households. All 262 domestic and 715 international flights were canceled on Friday morning (Taipei Times).
• Japan. The Japan Meteorological Agency warned the Okinawa region to be “on high alert for windstorms, high waves and heavy rain” as the storm passed the Sakishima Islands (Nippon.com/Jiji). Its latest bulletin could not be confirmed for this report.

Vance

NHC says “there are no coastal watches or warnings in effect,” but swells “are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions” along southwestern Mexico (NHC advisory 12). The next advisory is due at 9 a.m. CST (15:00 UTC).

Bay of Bengal: system to watch

India’s Meteorological Department expects a low over the Bay of Bengal to become a depression on Oct 24 and a cyclonic storm on the morning of Oct 26. It forecasts “extremely heavy rainfall” for coastal Andhra Pradesh on Oct 27 and 28 and Odisha on Oct 28 (ANI). Odisha has told officials to move people from low-lying areas and ready cyclone shelters (PTI via Vartha Bharati). JTWC rates the chance of a tropical cyclone forming within 24 hours as high (JTWC).

Fires

US wildfire activity is light, at the lowest national preparedness level, though the year’s totals remain well above average. Figures are from the National Interagency Fire Center report dated Friday, Oct 23, 07:30 MDT (NIFC).

Fires to know

• Sisi, Washington: 4,743 acres, 34% contained, 10 miles NW of Stehekin. NIFC notes “Residences threatened” and road and trail closures.
• Kickapoo Creek, Texas: 300 acres, 50% contained, “Structures threatened.”
• Grasshopper, Oregon: the largest listed, at 93,972 acres and 98% contained, with 33 structures lost.

Elsewhere: GDACS flagged only green-level (lowest) fire alerts, the largest of about 12,648 hectares (31,250 acres) across Botswana and Zimbabwe. Others were in China, Mauritania and Mali, Burkina Faso and Australia (GDACS).

Floods

The San Juan River in the Four Corners region broke a record that had stood since 1909, with about 1,500 residences evacuated in San Juan County, New Mexico. At Farmington the river reached 14.1 ft on Friday against the 1909 record of 12.3 ft (Navajo Times); the Albuquerque Journal gave 14.5 ft (ABQ Journal). County spokesperson Devin Neeley, the source of the evacuation figure, also counted about 60 rescues by Friday evening. No deaths had been reported as of Friday evening. Rain topped 5 inches (12.7 cm) near Pagosa Springs, Colorado (AP via WSLS). San Juan County and the Navajo Nation have declared emergencies, and Colorado declared a disaster emergency in 11 counties. Downstream at Shiprock, the National Weather Service expected the river to pass major flood stage on Saturday morning.

Taiwan’s typhoon rain is covered under Storms.

Also today

No eruption forced evacuations, and no tsunami warning is in effect. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center lists “No Tsunami Warning, Advisory, Watch, or Threat in effect” (tsunami.gov).

• Whakaari/White Island, New Zealand: the alert level was raised to 3 (of 5) and the aviation color code to orange on Oct 21, after a diffuse ash plume was seen (Smithsonian/USGS, Oct 15-21).
• Krakatau, Indonesia: ash plumes rose up to 600 m (about 2,000 ft) above the vent; the public is told to stay 5 km (3 mi) from the summit.
• Nevados de Chillán, Chile: a lava flow on the southwest flank reached 514 m (1,690 ft); alert level yellow.
• Ongoing: 23 volcanoes, including Sheveluch in Russia, whose ash reached 29,500 ft (9 km) on Oct 15.

What to watch in the next 24 hours

• San Juan River crest at Shiprock, New Mexico: expected Saturday morning, with flood warnings through Sunday afternoon. Updates: NWS Albuquerque and San Juan County Office of Emergency Management.
• Bay of Bengal depression: IMD expects a depression on Oct 24 and a cyclonic storm by Oct 26. Updates: IMD bulletins, several times a day.
• Champi: the Taiwan sea warning should be lifted Saturday evening or night. Updates: Taiwan CWA, JMA and JTWC (every six hours).
• Vance: next NHC advisory at 15:00 UTC, then every six hours.
• Vanuatu aftershocks: strong aftershocks continue. Updates: Vanuatu Meteorology and Geo-hazards Department and USGS.

About this report

This report covers 11:20 UTC Oct 23 to 11:20 UTC Oct 24, 2026 (7:20 a.m. to 7:20 a.m. EDT). It draws on USGS, NHC, JTWC, Taiwan’s CWA, IMD, NIFC, GDACS and the Smithsonian/USGS volcano report, plus news outlets for tolls. Earthquake counts are preliminary and can change as seismologists review events. The fire report is dated Oct 23, the volcano report covers Oct 15-21, and tolls are as last published. Storm figures age quickly; the issuing agency’s newest advisory always takes precedence.

Glossary

• Magnitude: a measure of the energy an earthquake releases. Each whole step is about 32 times more energy.
• Aftershock: a smaller earthquake that follows a larger one in the same area.
• Extratropical: a storm that has lost its tropical structure. It can still bring strong wind and rain.
• Preparedness Level: the US national wildfire readiness scale from 1 (low) to 5 (highest demand).
• Flood stage: the river level at which water begins to cause damage. “Major” flood stage means extensive flooding.

Frequently asked questions

Did the Vanuatu earthquake cause a tsunami? The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center briefly warned of possible hazardous waves within 300 km. It said at 03:28 UTC that the threat had passed. No damage or injuries had been reported.

Why is the San Juan River flooding when it has a dam? Several days of heavy rain fell on ground already soaked after two months of storms, and tributaries such as the Animas joined the main river. An NWS hydrologist said the river “really hasn’t flooded like this since they built Navajo Dam” (Santa Fe New Mexican).

Is Typhoon Champi still a danger? It has weakened to a tropical storm and Taiwan has lifted its land warning. High seas continue near Taiwan and Okinawa, and the storm is expected to lose its tropical features by Oct 26.

Will Hurricane Vance hit Mexico? NHC has no coastal watches or warnings in effect, and Vance is moving north-northwest well offshore. Dangerous surf and rip currents are likely along southwestern Mexico.