M1.5 Earthquake near Eatonville, United States — 13 September 2026
A micro earthquake of magnitude 1.5 was recorded near Eatonville, United States on , with an epicentre 6 km northwest of Eatonville, at a focal depth of 17.9 km. It ranked as the 3306th strongest of 7736 earthquakes recorded in the United States in the preceding 30 days.
Time (UTC): 2026-09-13 20:56:27
Time (your timezone): —
Magnitude: 1.5 (micro)
Focal depth: 17.9 km (shallow)
Epicentre: 46.9008, -122.3360
Location: 6 km NW of Eatonville, Washington
Country: United States
USGS link to NOAA tsunami information: Not linked
Review status: Reviewed
Source: USGS event page
How strong was this earthquake?
Micro earthquakes are almost never felt at the surface and are recorded only by seismographs.
A magnitude 1.5 earthquake radiates roughly 3.0 kg of TNT equivalent in seismic energy.
The USGS assigns this earthquake a significance score of 36, which is below the USGS threshold of more than 600 for its significant-earthquake list. The ranking combines magnitude with available Did You Feel It responses and PAGER alert level; it is not a direct measurement of damage.
What the magnitude scale actually measures →
When it happened locally
That is about 12:47 local solar time at the epicentre, around midday.
This event was deeper than 84% of the 155,793 earthquakes recorded in the United States in our catalogue and stronger than 62% of them.
Where was the epicentre?
The epicentre was located at 46.9008, -122.3360 — 6 km northwest of Eatonville. The closest other recorded event was a magnitude 0.2 earthquake 25 km east of here on 10 September 2026.
The nearest other settlements in our records are Alder (24 km south), Allyn (63 km north-northwest), Aberdeen (111 km west) and Amboy (115 km south).
Why the 18 km depth matters
At 18 km this was a shallow earthquake. Shallow events release their energy close to the surface, so for a given magnitude they produce noticeably stronger shaking — and more damage — than deeper ones. Roughly three quarters of all earthquakes worldwide occur at shallow depths.
This catalogue does not ingest eyewitness responses, so it cannot confirm where this earthquake was felt. Based on magnitude alone, events this small are usually detected by instruments rather than people. Its shallow focus makes stronger surface shaking more likely than for a deeper event of the same magnitude.
Read more on how focal depth changes what you feel →
What does the tsunami information flag mean?
The USGS record does not carry a link to NOAA tsunami information. That field is not an all-clear and does not state whether a tsunami occurred. In this case, a damaging tsunami would be less likely because at M1.5 it falls below the magnitude 6.5 threshold that generally applies before a submarine earthquake displaces enough water to generate a damaging tsunami; it occurred inland rather than beneath the sea floor. For an active coastal alert, use tsunami.gov or your local warning authority.
How earthquakes generate tsunamis, and what the alert levels mean →
Aftershocks and local seismic history
No further earthquakes have been recorded within about 150 km of the epicentre in the 5 hours since this event.
1 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or above have been logged within roughly 200 km of this epicentre in our catalogue. The strongest was a magnitude 4.5 event near Orcas on 03 March 2025. This M1.5 event released about 26,607 times less energy than that event.
1435 earthquakes have been recorded within 100 km of this epicentre in the past year, 138 of them in the past 30 days.
How long aftershock sequences last, and how large they get →
Where this event sits in the record
This earthquake is part of the September 2026 worldwide record, and of earthquakes in the United States during September 2026. Browse the full monthly archive to compare periods.
Nearest recorded earthquakes to this epicentre
- M0.2 earthquake near Carbonado, United States — (25 km E)
- M0.7 earthquake near Carbonado, United States — (25 km E)
- M0.1 earthquake near Carbonado, United States — (25 km E)
- M-0.4 earthquake near Carbonado, United States — (26 km E)
- M1.6 earthquake near Ashford, United States — (28 km ESE)
- M0.4 earthquake near Ashford, United States — (31 km ESE)
- M-0.4 earthquake near Ashford, United States — (34 km ESE)
- M0.3 earthquake near Ashford, United States — (34 km ESE)
- M1.1 earthquake near Ashford, United States — (35 km ESE)
- M1.7 earthquake near Mossyrock, United States — (46 km SSW)
Other recent earthquakes in the United States
- M2.1 earthquake near Anchor Point, United States —
- M0.8 earthquake near The Geysers, United States —
- M1.3 earthquake near Van Horn, United States —
- M0.6 earthquake near Ocotillo Wells, United States —
- M2.1 earthquake near Cantwell, United States —
- M0.8 earthquake near The Geysers, United States —
- M1.0 earthquake near The Geysers, United States —
- M1.6 earthquake near Borrego Springs, United States —
- M1.6 earthquake near Clam Gulch, United States —
- M0.8 earthquake near The Geysers, United States —
Other magnitude 1 earthquakes worldwide
- M1.3 earthquake near Van Horn, United States —
- M1.6 earthquake near Borrego Springs, United States —
- M1.6 earthquake near Clam Gulch, United States —
- M1.3 earthquake near Larsen Bay, United States —
- M1.7 earthquake near Woodside, United States —
- M1.3 earthquake near Toyah, United States —
- M1.5 earthquake near Whites City, United States —
- M1.4 earthquake near Anchor Point, United States —
Questions about this earthquake
How strong was the earthquake near Eatonville?
It measured magnitude 1.5 — a micro earthquake. A magnitude 1.5 earthquake radiates roughly 3.0 kg of TNT equivalent in seismic energy.
How deep was the earthquake near Eatonville?
The focus was 18 km below the surface, which counts as shallow.
Was the Eatonville earthquake felt at the surface?
At magnitude 1.5 and a focal depth of 18 km, shaking would have been concentrated near the epicentre.
When did the earthquake near Eatonville happen?
13 September 2026 at 20:56 UTC.
Was there a tsunami?
No. The USGS record carries no tsunami-information link for this event.
Have there been aftershocks?
No further earthquakes have been recorded within about 150 km of the epicentre in the 5 hours since this event.
How often do earthquakes happen near Eatonville?
1 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or above have been logged within roughly 200 km of this epicentre in our catalogue. The strongest was a magnitude 4.5 event near Orcas on 03 March 2025. This M1.5 event released about 26,607 times less energy than that event.