Washington earthquakes

M2.3 earthquake 21 km SSE of Packwood, Washington

A magnitude 2.3 earthquake struck 21 km SSE of Packwood, Washington on Mon, Aug 17, 1981, 5:01 PM PDT (00:01 UTC), 1 km (1 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.4 22 km S of Morton, 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
2.3 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-08-18 00:01:35 UTC
Depth
1.2 km (0.7 mi), shallow
Epicenter
46.419° N, 121.586° 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 0.8 km horizontally, 1.5 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.07
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
101°
Stations used
37

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 27 in the 60 days after this one and 22 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10129793. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 4:15 AM UTC.