Did you feel the ground move? A powerful 6.1 earthquake, the strongest in nearly 150 years, shook the waters off Cuba’s northwest coast on Monday, June 8, 2026. The tremors reached into unlikely places: parts of Cuba, Mexico, and even Florida, where earthquakes barely cross anyone’s mind.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the earthquake hit about 104 kilometers west-northwest of Mantua, Cuba, just after 2 p.m. At first, they thought it measured 6.4, but later downgraded it to 6.1. The tremor stretched from South Florida to Tallahassee, as shown on USGS maps.
People in cities across Florida felt the shaking, with St. Petersburg and Tampa logging over 100 reports each. The tremor reached Orlando, South Florida, and even up near Jacksonville.
In Havana, the Associated Press said buildings shook, but so far, nobody’s been hurt. The National Tsunami Warning Center gave the all-clear: no tsunami, no further danger.
Englewood REVIEW readers jumped onto social media to share their experiences. Some felt the quake, while others didn’t notice a thing. One reader was actually on a cruise ship right where the earthquake hit. When asked if she felt it, she said, “Yes, it was a rumble, vibration, followed by a slight roll.” She wasn’t scared, though; she just found it interesting.
Paul Earle, a seismologist at the USGS, pointed out just how unusual this was for the region. He explained that this quake erupted within a tectonic plate, not along the boundaries where most major earthquakes happen. Quakes inside plates tend to be scattered and rare. For context, Earle said nothing this strong had hit within 200 miles of Monday’s epicenter since 1880, when a magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck near San Cristobal, Cuba.
So far, officials haven’t reported major damage or casualties. Still, the quake rattled Cuba, where decades of economic crisis left many buildings barely intact. There’s also been a string of widespread blackouts, making it tough to reach people or get a clear picture of the aftermath.
The USGS said people in Florida felt the shaking too. In Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula, the quake reached major tourist spots like Cancun, Playa del Carmen, and Tulum. People in Cancun, not used to anything like this, rushed out of office buildings and hotels.
Mexico’s Yucatan and Quintana Roo states activated emergency protocols, though both governors said they hadn’t seen any reports of damage yet. At least for now, the region seems to have avoided disaster, but the tremors were a shocking reminder that even the most unlikely places aren’t immune.
If you felt anything, the USGS wants to know. Please report it on their website.
Check back for more updates as this story develops. The Associated Press contributed to this story.
