Small earthquake beneath West Seattle

Thanks for the tip! Last night at 10:13 pm, 16 miles beneath California/Dawson, there was a 2.2-magnitude earthquake, according to the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network. That’s a small quake but it’s the first time in decades that West Seattle has had a 2.0-or-greater quake, according to the PNSN list. (We haven’t heard from anyone who felt it – the tip came from someone who got an automated alert about it.) Last quake we noted here was a 1.4 beneath Roxbury/14th two years ago.

ADDED 4:59 PM: We’ve gone back and searched quake records; since that 1.4 in December 2020, we’ve had two even-smaller microquakes in West Seattle, on two consecutive days – a 1.3, 7.8 miles beneath the surface just west of Fairmount Ravine’s north end, on May 29th of last year, and a 1.7 the next day, 12.7 miles beneath 42nd/Waite.

11 Replies to "Small earthquake beneath West Seattle"

  • M January 13, 2023 (4:26 pm)

    We live near Aegis and we felt it last night. There was a noise that sounded like something heavy hitting the ground, then the glass in our china cabinet rattled briefly. We thought it was an earthquake but when we checked online sources we couldn’t find anything.

  • Kersti Elisabeth Muul January 13, 2023 (4:49 pm)

    Here’s what the alert looked like. It was at 10:50 PM. I assumed you heard otherwise I would have texted!

    • WSB January 13, 2023 (5:12 pm)

      We have so many alerts on so many things that the phone won’t shut up most of the time, but not that. Funny they would use WC as a reference (same with the person who texted us) and not WS.

      • WS Res January 13, 2023 (8:59 pm)

        I’m assuming it might reflect where the sensors are located?

  • Second That January 13, 2023 (4:51 pm)

    How would you get this automated alert? 

  • 98126res January 13, 2023 (4:54 pm)

    I noticed this morning a crack in a concrete path in our backyard seemed a bit bigger. I wonder if the small earthquake could have jarred it… 

  • bubo January 13, 2023 (5:04 pm)

    Watching TV last night and felt something, enough to look at my watch and note the time. Nice to be validated!

  • Adam January 13, 2023 (9:09 pm)

    I’ve been struggling to figure out why my dog has had anxiety since last night, unlike anything I see until the 4th of July or NYE fireworks. 

  • James January 14, 2023 (12:12 am)

    Wow, that’s right below our house!  Seems about the same time we put our 100+ lb Dog/Horse to bed.  He thumped down the stairs.  Coincidence?

  • B-Rad January 14, 2023 (10:23 pm)

    We heard a loud boom when it happened, I thought something exploded. No news on WSB so I figured it was just a train.

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