An earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale was detected near the Kuril Islands in the Russian Far East by the Unified Earth Physics Authority of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

The seismic event occurred at 4:40 am local time on Friday (20:40 pm Thursday, Moscow time).

The earthquake's epicenter was situated at a depth of 66 km in the Pacific Ocean, approximately 123 km southeast of Iturup Island. Residents in the city of Kurilsk and several villages on Iturup Island reported feeling the tremors.

Kurilsk, one of the smallest Russian cities, has a population of around 2,500 people. The local administration of the Ministry of Emergencies in Sakhalin Province, to which the islands belong, is monitoring the situation.