Kansas earthquakes

M3.4 earthquake 5 km WSW of Bluff City, Kansas

A magnitude 3.4 earthquake struck 5 km WSW of Bluff City, Kansas on Sat, Oct 17, 2015, 8:20 AM CDT (13:20 UTC), 6 km (4 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.4 7 km SSE of Byron, Oklahoma. This one was a foreshock.

Anthony forecast More in Kansas

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 3.4 (mwr), minor
Local time: Sat, Oct 17, 2015, 8:20 AM CDT
UTC: 2015-10-17 13:20:00 UTC
Depth: 5.8 km (3.6 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 37.057° N, 97.934° W
Region: Kansas
Felt reports: 1
Tsunami flag: No
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

Did you feel it?

1 person reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was III, weak shaking.

Fault motion and ground failure

How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.

Faulting: Normal
Moment magnitude: 3.4 Mwr
Nodal plane 1: Strike 59°, dip 62°, rake -112°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 280°, dip 35°, rake -55°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 2.5 km horizontally, 6.6 km in depth
Station coverage gap: 76°
Stations used: 40

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 200 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 200.

Earthquakes today Kansas earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us10003pcq (also filed as ismpkansas70144988). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 10:53 AM UTC.