Significant earthquakes of 1986

July 21, 1986 Earthquake: Chalfant Valley, California-Nevada, United States

July 21, 1986 · M6.2 · $1 million

A magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck Chalfant Valley, California-Nevada, United States on July 21, 1986 at 14:42:26 UTC, 9 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
July 21, 1986
Time
14:42:26 UTC
Place
Chalfant Valley, California-Nevada, United States
Magnitude
6.2 (Ms)
Focal depth
9 km (6 mi)
Intensity
6 on the Modified Mercalli scale
Tsunami
None recorded
Epicenter
37.537° N, 118.447° W

The toll

Damage
$1 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.

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

More

Significant earthquakes of 1986The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1986Recent 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 5105.