QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.2ml

Earthquake near Seal Beach, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Seal Beach in the 24 hours to 3:43 am PST (11:43 UTC). The last one was M 3.2, 9 km (6 mi) NW, at 12:44 am PDT on 9 October 2026, estimated intensity III (weak) in town; 1,090 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Seal Beach

This page: a magnitude 2.2 earthquake was recorded 12 km (7 mi) south of Seal Beach, CA, at 6:59 am PDT on 26 March 2018 (13:59 UTC), 9.5 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 12km S of Seal Beach, CA

13 km (8 mi) WSW of Huntington Beach, CA · 50 km (31 mi) SSE of Los Angeles, CA

6:59 am PDT, Mar 26, 2018 · · 9.5 km deep · released about 54 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Seal Beach Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Orange County 32 kmLos Angeles County 64 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
6:59 am PDT on 26 March 2018 ()
Where
12 km (7 mi) south of Seal Beach, CA · earthquakes near Seal Beach
Magnitude
M 2.2 (ml)
Depth
9.5 km below the surface
Felt
1 report · strongest reported intensity II
Nearest
Orange County, 32 km E
Nearest mapped fault
Palos Verdes fault, 4 km from its surface trace — near is not the same as on
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3030 days ago

This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 15 km (9 mi) from the epicentre. In Seal Beach, 12 km away, the estimate is intensity II (weak). Estimated from magnitude, depth and distance with the intensity equation USGS Did You Feel It? uses; felt reports, where there are any, are the measurement.

Likely felt in: Huntington Beach 11 km, intensity II · Seal Beach 12 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 54 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.2 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 280,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 200,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 18× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.2 about 54 lb of TNT

Energy from the Gutenberg–Richter relation (log10E = 1.5M + 4.8), rounded to two figures; bar length is magnitude, which is already a logarithm of energy. Magnitudes of past earthquakes from the USGS catalogue.

For this area

No earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded within 50 km since our catalogue begins in 2016.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 9 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.4 The 1933 Long Beach, California Earthquake · 11 km E of this epicentre
  2. 5.9 The 1987 Whittier Narrows, California Earthquake · 47 km N of this epicentre
  3. 5.4 5km S of Chino Hills, CA · 48 km NE of this epicentre
  4. 5.3 7km W of Newport Beach, CA · 11 km E of this epicentre
  5. 5.2 2km WSW of Rosemead, CA · 49 km N of this epicentre

Since 2016: the QuakeIndex catalogue (US, M1.5+), built from the USGS FDSN event service. Before 2016: USGS ComCat, M5+ from 1900. Distances are between epicentres. This is the record, not a forecast.

Where

Epicentre 33.6368, -118.1195. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Orange County, CA 32 km (20 mi) E earthquakes near Orange County
Los Angeles County, CA 64 km (40 mi) NNW earthquakes near Los Angeles County
Ventura County, CA 123 km (77 mi) NW earthquakes near Ventura County

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

49 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 1.9 9km ENE of Villa Park, CA
  2. 1.5 6km SW of Marina del Rey, CA
  3. 1.8 3km S of Huntington Beach, CA
  4. 1.6 26km SW of Dana Point, CA
  5. 1.8 1km W of Manhattan Beach, CA
  6. 2.4 1km WSW of Manhattan Beach, CA
  7. 2.1 7km NE of San Pedro, CA
  8. 1.6 1km ENE of Lennox, CA
  9. 1.6 12km SSE of San Pedro, CA
  10. 2.5 2km NE of Villa Park, CA
  11. 1.7 1km ENE of Yorba Linda, CA
  12. 1.6 1km SSE of Placentia, CA
  13. 2.6 3km SSW of Signal Hill, CA
  14. 1.9 2km WSW of Yorba Linda, CA
  15. 1.6 11km WSW of Corona, CA

Counted from the QuakeIndex database, which ingests the USGS feed every 30 seconds · as of . QuakeIndex does not forecast aftershocks. When USGS issues an operational aftershock forecast it appears on the USGS event page.

On USGS

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.