February 9, 1928 Earthquake: British Columbia, Canada

Name: February 9, 1928 Earthquake: British Columbia, Canada
Start: 1928-02-09
Location: British Columbia, Canada

February 9, 1928 · M5.8

A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck British Columbia, Canada on February 9, 1928, 33 km below the surface. It caused a tsunami.

Map

Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.

The earthquake

Date: February 9, 1928
Place: British Columbia, Canada
Magnitude: 5.8 (Ms)
Focal depth: 33 km (21 mi)
Tsunami: Yes: the tsunami it caused
Epicenter: 49.000° N, 125.000° W
Country: Canada
Region: North America and Hawaii

The toll

The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this earthquake.

What the record says

NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.

February 9, 1928, 3:04 [local time], 49 N, 125 W, magnitude 5.75 MS, tsunami event validity possible. There was an earthquake with source in the region of Vancouver Island, apparently near the Alberni Canal. There were strong tremors at Port Alberni, Bamfield, on Cape Pachena, and weak ones at Vancouver, Nanaimo and Port Townsend. Tremors were also felt at Abbotsford, Duncan, Covichane, Victoria, Port Renfrew, on Tatoosh Island and Destruction Island. Small tidal waves occurred near Bamfield. (reference #415)

February 9, 1928, 3:05 [local time], Vancouver Island, probably off west coast (48.5 N, 125 W). At Alberni, British Columbia, loud report and rumble. Tidal wave at Bamfield. Fairly strong shock at Tatoosh Island, Wash., where there was a loud roaring sound. Slight at Port Townsend. (reference #45)

FEBRUARY 9. 3:04 a.m. IV. The Victoria seismograph indicates an epicentre about 100 miles northwest of the city. Alberni, Bamfield, and Pachena Point felt the tremor most severely. At Alberni it was like a loud report, and near Bamfield small tidal waves were reported. Vancouver and Nanaimo reported the tremor as very slight. It was also felt at Abbotsford, Duncan, Cowichan, Victoria, Port Renfrew, Tatoosh and Destruction Islands. The epicentre was probably in the region of the Alberni canal. D., Prov. (reference #9755)

Sources NCEI cites

The publications NCEI lists for this record. The numbers match the “reference #” notes in its account above.

#45 U.S. Department of the Interior, Geological Survey and U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (1928-1986). United States Earthquakes, Annual publication, published 1928-1986. vol.s for 1928-1965 issued by the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey; volumes for 1966-1969 issued by the National Earthquake Information Center; volume for 1970 issued by the National Geophysical Data Center; volumes for 1971-1972 issued by the National Geophysical And Solar-Terrestrial Data Center; volumes for 1973-1980 published jointly by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Geological Survey; volumes for 1981-1986 published by the U.S. Geological Survey. [on shelf]
#415 Soloviev, S.L., and Ch.N. Go (1975). A catalogue of tsunamis on the eastern shore of the Pacific Ocean [dates include 1513-1968]. Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Nauka Publishing House, Moscow, 204 p. [Canadian Translation of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences no. 5078, 1984, translation available from Canada Institute for Scientific and Technical Information, National Research Council, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A OS2, 293 p.]
#9755 Milne, W.G. (1956). Seismic activity in Canada west of the 113th meridian, 1841-1951. - Publs. Domin. Astrophys. Observ., 1956, vol. 7, p. 134.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1928 The 1900s Every quake the USGS located in 1928 Recent earthquakes near here This day in weather history

Sources

Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-10-01. NCEI earthquake 6304.