California earthquakes

M2.1 earthquake 40 km SW of Ferndale, California

A magnitude 2.1 earthquake struck 40 km SW of Ferndale, California on Tue, Jun 23, 1981, 5:15 PM PDT (00:15 UTC), 27 km (17 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.2 63 km WSW of Ferndale, California. This one was a foreshock.

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Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
2.1 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-06-24 00:15:16 UTC
Depth
27.3 km (16.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter
40.330° N, 124.622° 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 1.6 km horizontally, 1.4 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.03
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
267°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
15

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 141 in the 60 days after this one and 58 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 141.

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1064825. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 11:16 AM UTC.