Washington earthquakes

M3.1 earthquake 2 km NW of Orcas, Washington

A magnitude 3.1 earthquake struck 2 km NW of Orcas, Washington on Wed, May 17, 1972, 10:07 PM PDT (05:07 UTC), 23 km (14 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.4 1 km NNW of Fobes Hill, Washington. This one was a foreshock.

Friday Harbor forecastMore in Washington

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

Open the live map with earthquakes

The earthquake

Magnitude
3.1 (md), minor
Local time
UTC
1972-05-18 05:07:36 UTC
Depth
23.0 km (14.3 mi), shallow
Epicenter
48.615° N, 122.964° W
Tsunami flag
No
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

Did you feel it?

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty
About 5.6 km horizontally, 7.4 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.15
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
297°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
6

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 9 in the 60 days after this one and 8 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 2.94 km WNW of Alger, Washington · 19848 days ago · 18 km deep · 41 km away
  2. 2.85 km NNW of Alger, Washington · 19848 days ago · 14 km deep · 43 km away
  3. 2.05 km NE of Lofall, Washington · 19848 days ago · 22 km deep · 89 km away
  4. 3.41 km NNW of Fobes Hill, Washington · 19813 days ago · 20 km deep · 96 km away
  5. 2.51 km NW of Fobes Hill, Washington · 19813 days ago · 22 km deep · 96 km away
  6. 3.23 km NE of La Conner, Washington · 19809 days ago · 21 km deep · 43 km away
  7. 2.76 km S of Blyn, Washington · 19807 days ago · 50 km deep · 72 km away
  8. 2.115 km NNW of Anacortes, Washington · 19802 days ago · 18 km deep · 21 km away
  9. 1.821 km SE of Oak Bay, Canada · 19792 days ago · 47 km deep · 34 km away

Before

  1. 1.84 km NE of Lake McMurray, Washington · 19865 days ago · 18 km deep · 65 km away
  2. 2.27 km N of Burlington, Washington · 19869 days ago · -1 km deep · 47 km away
  3. 1.54 km SE of Quilcene, Washington · 19869 days ago · 19 km deep · 93 km away
  4. 2.43 km WSW of Mount Vernon, Washington · 19869 days ago · 25 km deep · 49 km away
  5. 1.96 km NE of Lofall, Washington · 19871 days ago · 22 km deep · 88 km away
  6. 2.45 km S of Acme, Washington · 19875 days ago · 14 km deep · 56 km away
  7. 2.86 km ENE of Acme, Washington · 19879 days ago · -1 km deep · 63 km away
  8. 1.95 km S of Port Ludlow, Washington · 19880 days ago · 30 km deep · 85 km away

Earthquakes todayWashington earthquakesLive radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10853138. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 4:09 PM UTC.