California earthquakes

M1.6 earthquake 4km NNE of Cabazon, CA

A magnitude 1.6 earthquake struck 4km NNE of Cabazon, CA on Sat, Oct 17, 1981, 12:10 AM PDT (07:10 UTC), 16 km (10 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M1.8 23km NNW of Joshua Tree, CA. This one was a foreshock.

Cabazon forecastMore in California

Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
1.6 (mc), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-10-17 07:10:34 UTC
Depth
16.0 km (10.0 mi), shallow
Epicenter
33.947° N, 116.775° 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 0.3 km horizontally, 0.8 km in depth
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
37°
Stations used
35

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 112 in the 60 days after this one and 18 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 112.

Before

Earthquakes todayCalifornia earthquakesLive radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event ci525683. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 10:00 AM UTC.