California earthquakes

M1.6 earthquake 18 km WSW of Scotia, California

A magnitude 1.6 earthquake struck 18 km WSW of Scotia, California on Mon, Oct 12, 1981, 7:10 AM PDT (14:10 UTC), 28 km (17 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M2.2 43 km SW of Ferndale, California. 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
1981-10-12 14:10:41 UTC
Depth
27.5 km (17.1 mi), shallow
Epicenter
40.410° N, 124.295° 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 0.5 km horizontally, 0.7 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.08
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
189°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
15

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 156 in the 60 days after this one and 43 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 156.

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1068563. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 10:31 AM UTC.