M1.7 earthquake 12 km WNW of Orcas, Washington
A magnitude 1.7 earthquake struck 12 km WNW of Orcas, Washington on Mon, Jan 12, 1981, 5:23 PM PST (01:23 UTC), 14 km (8 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M1.9 3 km WSW of Big Lake, Washington. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 1.7 (md), micro
- Local time
- UTC
- 1981-01-13 01:23:57 UTC
- Depth
- 13.5 km (8.4 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 48.645° N, 123.102° W
- Region
- Washington
- 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 0.8 km horizontally, 1.8 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.12
- Depth from
- From location
- Station coverage gap
- 68°
- Stations used
- 14
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 8 in the 60 days after this one and 3 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 1.57 km ENE of Lake McMurray, Washington · 16670 days ago · 0 km deep · 79 km away
- 1.93 km WSW of Big Lake, Washington · 16667 days ago · 15 km deep · 67 km away
- 1.512 km E of Acme, Washington · 16645 days ago · -1 km deep · 79 km away
- 2.66 km NNE of Cedar, Canada · 16641 days ago · 59 km deep · 78 km away
- 1.613 km NNE of Orcas, Washington · 16638 days ago · 9 km deep · 20 km away
- 2.116 km SE of Oak Bay, Canada · 16633 days ago · 40 km deep · 36 km away
- 1.55 km ENE of Orcas, Washington · 16631 days ago · 16 km deep · 17 km away
- 1.616 km WNW of Langford, Canada · 16630 days ago · 25 km deep · 46 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayWashington earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10093308. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 3:51 AM UTC.