Oregon earthquakes

M1.5 earthquake 21 km ESE of Molalla, Oregon

A magnitude 1.5 earthquake struck 21 km ESE of Molalla, Oregon on Fri, Sep 12, 1986, 5:53 PM PDT (00:53 UTC), -1 km (-1 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M1.7 5 km SSW of Saint Paul, Oregon. 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
1.5 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1986-09-13 00:53:03 UTC
Depth
-1.2 km (-0.8 mi), shallow
Epicenter
45.062° N, 122.326° W
Region
Oregon
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 0.3 km horizontally, 0.8 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.07
Depth from
Operator assigned
Station coverage gap
266°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
8

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 1 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10210938. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 8:58 PM UTC.