California earthquakes

M2.4 earthquake 5 km SE of Palermo, California

A magnitude 2.4 earthquake struck 5 km SE of Palermo, California on Mon, Apr 20, 1981, 7:11 PM PST (03:11 UTC), 6 km (4 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M2.4 13 km SSW of Lake Almanor West, California. This one was a foreshock.

Palermo forecastMore in California

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude
2.4 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-04-21 03:11:38 UTC
Depth
5.8 km (3.6 mi), shallow
Epicenter
39.395° N, 121.494° 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 0.6 km horizontally, 1.1 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.18
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
164°
Stations used
11

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 25 in the 60 days after this one and 10 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 2.27 km WNW of Sierra City, California · 16586 days ago · 10 km deep · 70 km away
  2. 2.06 km ESE of Butte Meadows, California · 16584 days ago · 5 km deep · 75 km away
  3. 1.75 km WNW of Bangor, California · 16583 days ago · 6 km deep · 3 km away
  4. 1.612 km S of Guinda, California · 16580 days ago · 4 km deep · 96 km away
  5. 2.413 km SSW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16579 days ago · 5 km deep · 84 km away
  6. 3.27 km SW of Artois, California · 16573 days ago · 19 km deep · 69 km away
  7. 1.913 km WSW of Maxwell, California · 16571 days ago · -1 km deep · 74 km away
  8. 1.916 km WSW of Williams, California · 16569 days ago · 2 km deep · 79 km away
  9. 2.314 km S of Guinda, California · 16567 days ago · 4 km deep · 100 km away
  10. 2.313 km WSW of Esparto, California · 16567 days ago · 4 km deep · 100 km away
  11. 2.70 km WSW of Clipper Mills, California · 16566 days ago · 11 km deep · 32 km away
  12. 2.53 km SW of Clipper Mills, California · 16564 days ago · 12 km deep · 30 km away
  13. 1.71 km NNW of Lincoln, California · 16560 days ago · 6 km deep · 57 km away
  14. 2.50 km SSW of Clipper Mills, California · 16560 days ago · 12 km deep · 33 km away
  15. 1.912 km WSW of Chester, California · 16559 days ago · 1 km deep · 96 km away
  16. 2.013 km SW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16558 days ago · 8 km deep · 87 km away
  17. 1.72 km W of Nord, California · 16558 days ago · 20 km deep · 60 km away
  18. 2.91 km SW of Clipper Mills, California · 16555 days ago · 14 km deep · 31 km away
  19. 2.015 km NNW of Guinda, California · 16548 days ago · 9 km deep · 81 km away
  20. 1.63 km ESE of Palermo, California · 16546 days ago · 3 km deep · 4 km away
  21. 2.4Northern California · 16545 days ago · 13 km deep · 89 km away
  22. 2.510 km SW of Spring Garden, California · 16544 days ago · -1 km deep · 72 km away
  23. 2.114 km NNW of Guinda, California · 16544 days ago · 8 km deep · 82 km away
  24. 2.14 km NNW of Dobbins, California · 16544 days ago · 22 km deep · 24 km away
  25. 2.213 km WNW of Cohasset, California · 16541 days ago · 15 km deep · 72 km away

Before

  1. 2.013 km SW of Kingvale, California · 16595 days ago · 16 km deep · 85 km away
  2. 2.19 km SE of Mineral, California · 16598 days ago · 3 km deep · 99 km away
  3. 1.810 km SE of Mineral, California · 16599 days ago · 6 km deep · 99 km away
  4. 1.85 km SE of Palermo, California · 16602 days ago · 6 km deep · 1 km away
  5. 2.14 km SE of Palermo, California · 16603 days ago · 6 km deep · 1 km away
  6. 3.35 km NE of Canyondam, California · 16603 days ago · 15 km deep · 98 km away
  7. 2.212 km SE of Paskenta, California · 16610 days ago · 10 km deep · 93 km away
  8. 1.84 km NW of Tobin, California · 16612 days ago · 3 km deep · 65 km away
  9. 1.69 km WNW of Plumas Eureka (historical), California · 16617 days ago · 7 km deep · 75 km away
  10. 2.711 km N of Princeton, California · 16618 days ago · 19 km deep · 45 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1062819. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 9:31 PM UTC.