California earthquakes

M1.7 earthquake 9 km WSW of Ferndale, California

A magnitude 1.7 earthquake struck 9 km WSW of Ferndale, California on Sat, Jan 11, 1986, 12:44 PM PST (20:44 UTC), 17 km (11 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M2.0 7 km W of Rio Dell, 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
1.7 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1986-01-11 20:44:38 UTC
Depth
16.9 km (10.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter
40.528° N, 124.363° 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 16.0 km horizontally, 10.0 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.08
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
220°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
7

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 39 in the 60 days after this one and 41 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc66152. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 8:50 PM UTC.