Washington earthquakes

M1.7 earthquake 14 km S of Packwood, Washington

A magnitude 1.7 earthquake struck 14 km S of Packwood, Washington on Wed, Sep 5, 1979, 3:44 PM PDT (22:44 UTC), 2 km (1 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M1.9 Washington. This one was a foreshock.

Morton 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
1.7 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1979-09-05 22:44:24 UTC
Depth
2.4 km (1.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter
46.477° N, 121.699° 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 1.5 km horizontally, 1.5 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.09
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
230°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
10

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.

After

Earthquakes todayWashington earthquakesLive radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10850578. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 12:20 PM UTC.