Washington earthquakes

M2.6 earthquake 12 km SSW of Bell Hill, Washington

A magnitude 2.6 earthquake struck 12 km SSW of Bell Hill, Washington on Sat, Jan 13, 1979, 1:05 AM PST (09:05 UTC), 40 km (25 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.8 6 km WSW of Coupeville, Washington. This one was a foreshock.

Bell Hill forecastMore in Washington

Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
2.6 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1979-01-13 09:05:52 UTC
Depth
40.1 km (24.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter
47.951° N, 123.151° 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 0.1 km horizontally, 0.1 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.07
Depth from
Operator assigned
Station coverage gap
108°
Stations used
12

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 2 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 1.72 km S of Skokomish, Washington · 17414 days ago · 38 km deep · 71 km away
  2. 1.53 km WNW of Lake Marcel-Stillwater, Washington · 17410 days ago · 18 km deep · 94 km away
  3. 2.56 km WSW of Coupeville, Washington · 17408 days ago · 22 km deep · 40 km away
  4. 1.91 km WNW of Artondale, Washington · 17400 days ago · 16 km deep · 81 km away
  5. 1.75 km NNE of McCleary, Washington · 17395 days ago · 39 km deep · 95 km away
  6. 2.26 km ESE of Maplewood, Washington · 17391 days ago · 8 km deep · 81 km away
  7. 1.51 km ENE of Silver Firs, Washington · 17390 days ago · 14 km deep · 77 km away
  8. 1.54 km NW of Chico, Washington · 17367 days ago · 23 km deep · 46 km away
  9. 3.86 km WSW of Coupeville, Washington · 17361 days ago · 23 km deep · 40 km away

Before

  1. 3.4Olympic Peninsula, Washington · 17435 days ago · 40 km deep · 72 km away
  2. 1.611 km W of Ault Field, Washington · 17446 days ago · 14 km deep · 51 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10848688. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 8:55 PM UTC.