JOHOR BARU: The tremors felt in Segamat and Yong Peng may indicate the presence of a previously unidentified active fault line in Johor, according to a Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) academic.
Dr Mohd Zamri Ramli, who is part of UTM’s engineering seismology and earthquake engineering research (eSEER) team, said past geological data showed no evidence of active faults in Segamat except for some activity recorded in Mersing along the Mersing fault line.
“However, the 4.1 magnitude tremor at 6.13am today (yesterday), followed by a 2.8 magnitude aftershock four hours later in Yong Peng, suggests the presence of a fault that requires further detailed study,” he said.
Mohd Zamri, also a senior lecturer at the university’s Faculty of Civil Engineering, said earthquakes occur when stress builds up along rock layers over time, eventually causing slippage along fault lines.
The aftermath: Impact of the tremors that were felt in Segamat, Johor. — Photo courtesy of Jimmy Puah’s Facebook page
“In this case, the tremors were aligned in a northwest-southeast orientation.
“Although no active fault had been identified there before, the events suggest a small inactive fault may have been reactivated, possibly influenced by regional seismic activity from neighbouring countries,” he added.
Mohd Zamri said earthquakes in Peninsular Malaysia are rare but not unprecedented, as tremors were recorded along the Bukit Tinggi fault line in Pahang between 2007 and 2009, with magnitudes of up to 4.2.
He added that other quakes, between 1.5 and 4.6 magnitude, have also been recorded in Kuala Pilah, Terengganu and parts of Perak.
Despite that, Mohd Zamri said that Johor lies in a low-risk seismic zone, based on Malaysia’s Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA) contour map in Annex Malaysia to Eurocode 8 published in 2017.
“This tremor is considered minor and poses no serious threat to residents or buildings in the affected area.
“Johor falls under the 4% PGA zone, which indicates very low ground motion,” he said, urging the authorities to inspect critical infrastructure and advised the public not to panic in the event of aftershocks.
“If tremors are felt, leave the building only when the shaking has stopped. In the case of stronger quakes, gather in open spaces away from electrical poles, avoid using lifts and be mindful of falling debris. Always follow instructions from the authorities through official channels,” he said.
Meanwhile, at an event, Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching said her ministry, through the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), is developing a direct notification system to send disaster alerts to mobile phones, bypassing the current reliance on telco-based SMS broadcasts.
“Unlike SMS, which travels through the telco system and may be delayed when sent to large numbers of people, this notification system will allow MCMC to push alerts directly to phones in specific locations,” she said.
Teo added that the proposal has been included for consideration under Budget 2026, and that similar systems have been adopted in countries such as Japan.
“This will be very useful for Malaysia as it will allow faster, more accurate dissemination of warnings during natural disasters,” she said.
Teo said her ministry is also monitoring the situation in Segamat and Yong Peng in the Batu Pahat district to assess whether telecommunication networks have been affected, although no complaints of service disruption have been received so far.
Yesterday, Johor experienced two rare tremors: a 4.1 magnitude quake in Segamat at 6.13am, followed by a 2.8 magnitude tremor near Yong Peng at 9am.
According to the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) both quakes were felt in parts of Johor, Negri Sembilan, Melaka and southern Pahang.
No casualties or property damage were reported.
