April 13, 1949 Earthquake: Washington, United States

Name: April 13, 1949 Earthquake: Washington, United States
Start: 1949-04-13
Location: Washington, United States

April 13, 1949 · M7 · 8 deaths · $25 million

A magnitude 7 earthquake struck Washington, United States on April 13, 1949 at 19:55:42 UTC. It killed 8 people.

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: April 13, 1949
Time: 19:55:42 UTC
Place: Washington, United States
Magnitude: 7 (Ms)
Intensity: 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
Tsunami: Yes: the tsunami it caused
Epicenter: 47.167° N, 122.617° W
Country: United States

The toll

Deaths: 8
Damage: $25 million

Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.

What the record says

NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.

Ref #1250 lists $80 million damage.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

Significant earthquakes of 1949 The 1900s Every quake the USGS located in 1949 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 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 3898.