California earthquakes

M3.0 earthquake 83 km WSW of Ferndale, California

A magnitude 3.0 earthquake struck 83 km WSW of Ferndale, California on Wed, Aug 5, 1981, 11:17 AM PDT (18:17 UTC), 5 km (3 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.2 73 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
3.0 (md), minor
Local time
UTC
1981-08-05 18:17:32 UTC
Depth
4.6 km (2.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter
40.434° N, 125.226° 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 5.8 km horizontally, 5.3 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.23
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
305°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
8

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 129 in the 60 days after this one and 57 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 129.

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1066339. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 4:50 PM UTC.