California earthquakes

M1.9 earthquake 7 km NNE of Avenal, California

A magnitude 1.9 earthquake struck 7 km NNE of Avenal, California on Wed, Aug 28, 1985, 7:40 PM PDT (02:40 UTC), 7 km (5 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M2.1 10 km S of Huron, 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
1.9 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1985-08-29 02:40:06 UTC
Depth
7.5 km (4.7 mi), shallow
Epicenter
36.071° N, 120.108° 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 1.5 km horizontally, 0.9 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.07
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
252°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
13

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 185 in the 60 days after this one and 11 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 185.

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc54096 (also filed as ci113533). Read Wed, Sep 23, 2026, 2:48 AM UTC.