M2.6 earthquake 38km WNW of Petrolia, CA

A magnitude 2.6 earthquake struck 38km WNW of Petrolia, CA on Sun, Apr 18, 2021, 4:46 PM PDT (23:46 UTC), 24 km (15 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.0 20km ENE of Redway, CA. This one was a foreshock.

Map

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

Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.

Mag.	Scale	Computed by	Notes
2.65	Md, duration	Northern California Seismic System	Preferred · Final · ±0.275 · 16 stations
2.0	ML, local (Richter)	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Reviewed · ±0.048 · 57 stations

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

Reviewed by a seismologist.

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

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 61 in the 60 days after this one and 34 in the 30 days before it.

The first 60 of 61.

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc73551165 (also filed as us6000e2xs). Read Sun, Oct 4, 2026, 3:01 AM UTC.