Washington earthquakes

M1.5 earthquake 19 km NNE of Index, Washington

A magnitude 1.5 earthquake struck 19 km NNE of Index, Washington on Mon, May 18, 1981, 5:04 AM PDT (12:04 UTC), 6 km (3 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M1.7 1 km SE of Redmond, Washington. This one was a foreshock.

May Creek 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
1.5 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-05-18 12:04:44 UTC
Depth
5.6 km (3.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter
47.992° N, 121.500° 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, 0.3 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.17
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
249°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
6

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 33 in the 60 days after this one and 15 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 1.71 km SE of Redmond, Washington · 16562 days ago · 11 km deep · 58 km away
  2. 1.611 km NE of Snoqualmie, Washington · 16558 days ago · 2 km deep · 46 km away
  3. 1.68 km SSW of Concrete, Washington · 16558 days ago · 3 km deep · 56 km away
  4. 1.67 km ENE of Snoqualmie, Washington · 16555 days ago · 9 km deep · 51 km away
  5. 2.66 km WSW of Entiat, Washington · 16554 days ago · 2 km deep · 98 km away
  6. 1.512 km NNE of Hamilton, Washington · 16553 days ago · -1 km deep · 79 km away
  7. 1.814 km NNE of Hamilton, Washington · 16553 days ago · -1 km deep · 78 km away
  8. 2.56 km NNW of Bangor Trident Base, Washington · 16547 days ago · 21 km deep · 95 km away
  9. 1.53 km ENE of Union Hill-Novelty Hill, Washington · 16547 days ago · -1 km deep · 49 km away
  10. 1.9Washington · 16547 days ago · -1 km deep · 49 km away
  11. 2.412 km ESE of Riverbend, Washington · 16544 days ago · 13 km deep · 63 km away
  12. 2.37 km ENE of Quilcene, Washington · 16540 days ago · 52 km deep · 97 km away
  13. 1.815 km NNE of Hamilton, Washington · 16538 days ago · -1 km deep · 80 km away
  14. 1.915 km NNE of Hamilton, Washington · 16537 days ago · -1 km deep · 80 km away
  15. 1.516 km SSE of Darrington, Washington · 16534 days ago · 9 km deep · 16 km away
  16. 1.54 km WSW of Darrington, Washington · 16533 days ago · 9 km deep · 30 km away
  17. 1.63 km ENE of Union Hill-Novelty Hill, Washington · 16531 days ago · -1 km deep · 50 km away
  18. 1.62 km ENE of Union Hill-Novelty Hill, Washington · 16531 days ago · -1 km deep · 50 km away
  19. 1.62 km ENE of Union Hill-Novelty Hill, Washington · 16531 days ago · -1 km deep · 50 km away
  20. 1.60 km NW of Normandy Park, Washington · 16526 days ago · 18 km deep · 88 km away
  21. 1.70 km W of Normandy Park, Washington · 16526 days ago · 17 km deep · 89 km away
  22. 1.70 km W of Normandy Park, Washington · 16526 days ago · 17 km deep · 89 km away
  23. 1.55 km NE of Port Townsend, Washington · 16524 days ago · 26 km deep · 91 km away
  24. 1.70 km W of Normandy Park, Washington · 16524 days ago · 17 km deep · 89 km away
  25. 1.55 km W of Darrington, Washington · 16520 days ago · 11 km deep · 31 km away
  26. 1.73 km ENE of Union Hill-Novelty Hill, Washington · 16519 days ago · 1 km deep · 49 km away
  27. 1.51 km SSE of Issaquah, Washington · 16518 days ago · 17 km deep · 66 km away
  28. 1.53 km ENE of Union Hill-Novelty Hill, Washington · 16518 days ago · -1 km deep · 50 km away
  29. 2.85 km WNW of Lofall, Washington · 16515 days ago · 52 km deep · 94 km away
  30. 1.69 km SSE of Leavenworth, Washington · 16514 days ago · 7 km deep · 85 km away
  31. 1.87 km E of Carnation, Washington · 16513 days ago · 12 km deep · 44 km away
  32. 1.69 km SSE of Leavenworth, Washington · 16512 days ago · 0 km deep · 84 km away
  33. 2.04 km W of Darrington, Washington · 16503 days ago · 2 km deep · 31 km away

Before

  1. 2.40 km W of Mountlake Terrace, Washington · 16564 days ago · 23 km deep · 65 km away
  2. 2.06 km NNE of Port Townsend, Washington · 16567 days ago · 21 km deep · 94 km away
  3. 1.81 km SE of Enetai, Washington · 16571 days ago · 32 km deep · 93 km away
  4. 1.52 km SW of Roosevelt, Washington · 16576 days ago · 25 km deep · 42 km away
  5. 1.5Washington · 16577 days ago · 1 km deep · 48 km away
  6. 1.55 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16579 days ago · 0 km deep · 48 km away
  7. 2.56 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16579 days ago · 1 km deep · 47 km away
  8. 1.65 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16579 days ago · 1 km deep · 47 km away
  9. 2.05 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16579 days ago · 5 km deep · 46 km away
  10. 1.76 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16579 days ago · 0 km deep · 48 km away
  11. 1.6Puget Sound region, Washington · 16582 days ago · 17 km deep · 89 km away
  12. 1.56 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16586 days ago · 0 km deep · 48 km away
  13. 1.77 km NNW of Kingston, Washington · 16586 days ago · 29 km deep · 80 km away
  14. 2.42 km SSE of Maple Heights-Lake Desire, Washington · 16592 days ago · 17 km deep · 77 km away
  15. 1.56 km SSE of Alger, Washington · 16592 days ago · 10 km deep · 88 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10102983. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 3:58 AM UTC.