M1.6 earthquake 3 km NNE of Waterville, Washington
A magnitude 1.6 earthquake struck 3 km NNE of Waterville, Washington on Tue, Dec 1, 1981, 6:39 AM PST (14:39 UTC), 7 km (5 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M1.9 6 km SSW of Winthrop, Washington. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 1.6 (md), micro
- Local time
- UTC
- 1981-12-01 14:39:16 UTC
- Depth
- 7.3 km (4.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 47.674° N, 120.047° 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 0.2 km horizontally, 0.7 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.05
- Depth from
- From location
- Station coverage gap
- 53°
- 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: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 4 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 1.652 km WNW of Granite Falls, Washington · 16361 days ago · 0 km deep · 76 km away
- 1.96 km SSW of Winthrop, Washington · 16359 days ago · 0 km deep · 84 km away
- 2.21 km NE of Mansfield, Washington · 16347 days ago · 3 km deep · 36 km away
- 2.718 km NNE of Thorp, Washington · 16332 days ago · 0 km deep · 65 km away
- 1.913 km ENE of Royal City, Washington · 16332 days ago · 2 km deep · 92 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayWashington earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10120668. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 2:36 PM UTC.