August 30, 1962 Earthquake: Utah, United States
A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck Utah, United States on August 30, 1962 at 13:35:28 UTC, 37 km below the surface.
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
- August 30, 1962
- Time
- 13:35:28 UTC
- Place
- Utah, United States
- Magnitude
- 5.8
- Focal depth
- 37 km (23 mi)
- Intensity
- 7 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 41.800° N, 111.800° W
- Country
- United States
The toll
- Damage
- $1 million
- Houses damaged
- Some (about 51 to 100)
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.
estimated damage $1 million[...]The most serious damage was at Richmond, where the church and several houses suffered, 75 per cent of old brick chimneys collapsed, and some schools were hit. (reference #1040)
The earthquake severely damaged many old, unreinforced brick buildings and other old structures on the east side of Cache Valley, Utah (reference #542)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
More
Significant earthquakes of 1962The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1962Recent earthquakes near hereThis 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 4274.