California earthquakes

M2.8 earthquake 56 km WSW of Ferndale, California

A magnitude 2.8 earthquake struck 56 km WSW of Ferndale, California on Sat, Nov 23, 1985, 9:08 PM PST (05:08 UTC), 16 km (10 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.2 36 km WSW of Ferndale, California. This one was a foreshock.

Ferndale 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
2.8 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1985-11-24 05:08:01 UTC
Depth
15.9 km (9.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter
40.421° N, 124.898° 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 2.2 km horizontally, 1.2 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.15
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
252°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
30

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 54 in the 60 days after this one and 21 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc59847. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 9:31 PM UTC.