Texas earthquakes

M3.8 earthquake 46 km W of Mentone, Texas

A magnitude 3.8 earthquake struck 46 km W of Mentone, Texas on Tue, Dec 3, 2024, 10:45 PM CST (04:45 UTC), 5 km (3 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.2 56 km S of Whites City, New Mexico. This one was a foreshock.

Mentone forecastMore in Texas

Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
3.8 (ML, local (Richter)), minor
Magnitude from
TX
Local time
UTC
2024-12-04 04:45:06 UTC
Depth
5.4 km (3.4 mi), shallow
Epicenter
31.679° N, 104.093° W
Region
Texas
Felt reports
4
Strongest shaking
IV, light shaking
PAGER alert
Green
Tsunami flag
No
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

Magnitude estimates

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.ScaleComputed byNotes
3.8ML, local (Richter)TXPreferred · Final · ±0.1 · 19 stations
3.6Mwr, regional momentUSGS National Earthquake Information CenterReviewed · ±0.061 · 26 stations

Shaking

The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.

Strongest estimated
IV, light shaking
Peak ground acceleration
7.6% of gravity
Peak ground velocity
1.9 cm/s
Map
Automatic
USGS ShakeMap: estimated shaking intensity around the epicenter
Estimated shaking intensity. Map: USGS ShakeMap.

Did you feel it?

4 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was III, weak shaking.

Did You Feel It? map: shaking reported by the public
Shaking reported by the public, by area. Map: USGS Did You Feel It?

Estimated impact

The USGS PAGER system estimates deaths and economic losses from the shaking and the population and buildings exposed to it.

Alert level
Green: little or no damage or loss of life expected
Deaths: estimated chance of each range
RangeChance
Under 165%
1 to 1030%
10 to 1004%
100 to 1,000Under 1%
1,000 to 10,000Under 1%
10,000 to 100,000Under 1%
100,000 to 10,000,000Under 1%
Economic losses: estimated chance of each range
Range, million USDChance
Under 165%
1 to 1030%
10 to 1004%
100 to 1,000Under 1%
1,000 to 10,000Under 1%
10,000 to 100,000Under 1%
100,000 to 10,000,000Under 1%

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
3.6 Mwr
Nodal plane 1
Strike 63°, dip 59°, rake -102°
Nodal plane 2
Strike 265°, dip 33°, rake -72°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty
About 0.4 km horizontally, 0.5 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.10
Station coverage gap
45°
Stations used
31

Nearest places

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

Nearby

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

After

The first 60 of at least 200.

Before

Earthquakes todayTexas earthquakesLive radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event tx2024xtxo (also filed as us7000nvsz). Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 12:53 PM UTC.