Washington earthquakes

M1.6 earthquake 5 km NNE of Oso, Washington

A magnitude 1.6 earthquake struck 5 km NNE of Oso, Washington on Fri, May 1, 1981, 2:30 PM PDT (21:30 UTC), 1 km (1 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M2.5 6 km NNE of Oso, Washington. 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
1.6 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-05-01 21:30:41 UTC
Depth
0.9 km (0.6 mi), shallow
Epicenter
48.316° N, 121.908° 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 1.2 km horizontally, 1.7 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.11
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
100°
Stations used
9

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 47 in the 60 days after this one and 17 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 2.56 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16579 days ago · 1 km deep · 1 km away
  2. 1.55 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16579 days ago · 0 km deep · 1 km away
  3. 1.5Washington · 16577 days ago · 1 km deep · 1 km away
  4. 1.52 km SW of Roosevelt, Washington · 16575 days ago · 25 km deep · 50 km away
  5. 1.81 km SE of Enetai, Washington · 16570 days ago · 32 km deep · 96 km away
  6. 2.413 km WSW of Ault Field, Washington · 16568 days ago · 29 km deep · 69 km away
  7. 2.06 km NNE of Port Townsend, Washington · 16566 days ago · 21 km deep · 63 km away
  8. 2.40 km W of Mountlake Terrace, Washington · 16564 days ago · 23 km deep · 66 km away
  9. 1.519 km NNE of Index, Washington · 16562 days ago · 6 km deep · 47 km away
  10. 1.71 km SE of Redmond, Washington · 16561 days ago · 11 km deep · 74 km away
  11. 1.611 km NE of Snoqualmie, Washington · 16558 days ago · 2 km deep · 80 km away
  12. 1.68 km SSW of Concrete, Washington · 16558 days ago · 3 km deep · 19 km away
  13. 1.67 km ENE of Snoqualmie, Washington · 16555 days ago · 9 km deep · 85 km away
  14. 1.512 km NNE of Hamilton, Washington · 16552 days ago · -1 km deep · 35 km away
  15. 1.814 km NNE of Hamilton, Washington · 16552 days ago · -1 km deep · 36 km away
  16. 2.56 km NNW of Bangor Trident Base, Washington · 16547 days ago · 21 km deep · 86 km away
  17. 1.53 km ENE of Union Hill-Novelty Hill, Washington · 16546 days ago · -1 km deep · 70 km away
  18. 1.9Washington · 16546 days ago · -1 km deep · 70 km away
  19. 1.911 km NE of Oak Bay, Canada · 16542 days ago · 35 km deep · 96 km away
  20. 2.37 km ENE of Quilcene, Washington · 16540 days ago · 52 km deep · 84 km away
  21. 1.815 km NNE of Hamilton, Washington · 16538 days ago · -1 km deep · 38 km away
  22. 1.915 km NNE of Hamilton, Washington · 16537 days ago · -1 km deep · 38 km away
  23. 1.516 km SSE of Darrington, Washington · 16534 days ago · 9 km deep · 37 km away
  24. 1.54 km WSW of Darrington, Washington · 16533 days ago · 9 km deep · 20 km away
  25. 1.63 km ENE of Union Hill-Novelty Hill, Washington · 16531 days ago · -1 km deep · 70 km away
  26. 1.62 km ENE of Union Hill-Novelty Hill, Washington · 16531 days ago · -1 km deep · 70 km away
  27. 1.62 km ENE of Union Hill-Novelty Hill, Washington · 16531 days ago · -1 km deep · 70 km away
  28. 3.47 km S of Kendall, Washington · 16527 days ago · 5 km deep · 62 km away
  29. 2.36 km ENE of Deming, Washington · 16527 days ago · 1 km deep · 61 km away
  30. 2.15 km E of Deming, Washington · 16527 days ago · 1 km deep · 59 km away
  31. 2.77 km S of Kendall, Washington · 16527 days ago · 2 km deep · 62 km away
  32. 2.16 km ENE of Deming, Washington · 16527 days ago · 1 km deep · 60 km away
  33. 2.16 km ENE of Deming, Washington · 16527 days ago · 1 km deep · 61 km away
  34. 2.37 km ENE of Deming, Washington · 16527 days ago · 2 km deep · 61 km away
  35. 1.97 km E of Deming, Washington · 16526 days ago · 10 km deep · 60 km away
  36. 1.55 km NE of Port Townsend, Washington · 16524 days ago · 26 km deep · 62 km away
  37. 2.26 km ENE of Deming, Washington · 16522 days ago · 2 km deep · 61 km away
  38. 1.96 km ENE of Deming, Washington · 16522 days ago · 7 km deep · 60 km away
  39. 2.36 km ENE of Deming, Washington · 16522 days ago · 2 km deep · 61 km away
  40. 1.96 km E of Deming, Washington · 16522 days ago · 3 km deep · 59 km away
  41. 1.96 km E of Deming, Washington · 16521 days ago · 1 km deep · 58 km away
  42. 2.06 km ENE of Deming, Washington · 16521 days ago · 2 km deep · 61 km away
  43. 2.56 km E of Deming, Washington · 16521 days ago · 2 km deep · 60 km away
  44. 1.95 km ENE of Deming, Washington · 16520 days ago · 2 km deep · 61 km away
  45. 2.16 km ENE of Deming, Washington · 16520 days ago · 7 km deep · 61 km away
  46. 1.87 km SSE of Kendall, Washington · 16520 days ago · 9 km deep · 61 km away
  47. 1.55 km W of Darrington, Washington · 16519 days ago · 11 km deep · 19 km away

Before

  1. 2.05 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16579 days ago · 5 km deep · 1 km away
  2. 1.76 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16579 days ago · 0 km deep · 1 km away
  3. 1.56 km NNE of Oso, Washington · 16586 days ago · 0 km deep · 1 km away
  4. 1.77 km NNW of Kingston, Washington · 16586 days ago · 29 km deep · 70 km away
  5. 2.42 km SSE of Maple Heights-Lake Desire, Washington · 16591 days ago · 17 km deep · 100 km away
  6. 1.56 km SSE of Alger, Washington · 16591 days ago · 10 km deep · 41 km away
  7. 2.43 km ENE of Sedro-Woolley, Washington · 16593 days ago · 3 km deep · 30 km away
  8. 2.122 km ENE of Glacier, Washington · 16593 days ago · -1 km deep · 73 km away
  9. 1.916 km NNE of May Creek, Washington · 16595 days ago · 7 km deep · 45 km away
  10. 1.84 km SSW of Hamilton, Washington · 16596 days ago · 3 km deep · 21 km away
  11. 1.68 km WNW of Alger, Washington · 16601 days ago · -1 km deep · 55 km away
  12. 1.811 km NNE of Snoqualmie, Washington · 16603 days ago · 13 km deep · 79 km away
  13. 1.97 km ENE of Snoqualmie, Washington · 16606 days ago · 9 km deep · 85 km away
  14. 2.07 km ENE of Snoqualmie, Washington · 16606 days ago · 8 km deep · 85 km away
  15. 1.53 km SE of Echo Lake, Washington · 16606 days ago · 16 km deep · 61 km away
  16. 1.7Washington · 16607 days ago · 4 km deep · 47 km away
  17. 1.9Washington · 16607 days ago · 2 km deep · 30 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10098803. Read Mon, Sep 21, 2026, 6:59 PM UTC.