Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.8ml
Earthquake near Heber, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Heber in the 24 hours to 5:07 am PST (13:07 UTC). The last one was M 4.9, 47 km (29 mi) SE, at 10:27 am PST on 3 November 2026, estimated intensity III (weak) in town; 321 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Heber
This page: a magnitude 1.8 earthquake was recorded 4 km (2 mi) south-southwest of Heber, CA, at 12:23 am PDT on 15 October 2017 (07:23 UTC), 3.3 km deep. 3 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 4km SSW of Heber, CA
- When
- 12:23 am PDT on 15 October 2017 ()
- Where
- 4 km (2 mi) south-southwest of Heber, CA · earthquakes near Heber
- Magnitude
- M 1.8 (ml)
- Depth
- 3.3 km below the surface
- Felt
- 3 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Imperial County, 42 km NNE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Imperial fault, 13 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 1558 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Heber, CA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Heber, CA. No account or email needed.
Alerts are on for .
Not a warning. An alert comes after USGS publishes a quake, usually minutes after the shaking. For early warning use ShakeAlert, through your phone's Wireless Emergency Alerts or the MyShake app.
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 13 km (8 mi) from the epicentre. In Heber, 4 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: Calexico 5 km, intensity II · El Centro 10 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 13 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.8 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,100,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 810,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 72× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.8 about 13 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
The largest earthquake within 50 km since 2016 was M 4.0 on 2016-07-31 — about 2,500 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 45 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.9 The 1940 Imperial Valley, California Earthquake · 23 km NE of this epicentre
- 6.6 The 1942 Fish Creek Mountains, California Earthquake · 38 km NW of this epicentre
- 6.6 The 1987 Superstition Hills, California Earthquake · 45 km NW of this epicentre
- 6.4 The 1979 Imperial Valley Earthquake, California-Baja California · 18 km ESE of this epicentre
- 6.3 The 1906 Imperial Valley, California Earthquake · 23 km NNE 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 32.7000, -115.5510. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Imperial County, CA | 42 km (26 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Imperial County |
| San Diego County, CA | 120 km (75 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near San Diego County |
| Riverside County, CA | 122 km (76 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Riverside 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.
- 2.3 10km S of Progreso, B.C., MX
- 2.0 19km WNW of Progreso, B.C., MX
- 1.7 14km SSW of Westmorland, CA
- 1.9 8km NW of Delta, B.C., MX
- 1.9 12km SE of Puebla, B.C., MX
- 2.1 14km SW of Westmorland, CA
- 2.0 14km SW of Westmorland, CA
- 1.8 15km SW of Westmorland, CA
- 1.6 20km W of Delta, B.C., MX
- 1.5 4km NE of Westmorland, CA
- 2.9 18km ESE of Ocotillo, CA
- 1.6 20km W of Westmorland, CA
- 1.8 7km E of Puebla, B.C., MX
- 1.9 6km WSW of Holtville, CA
- 1.8 7km WSW of Holtville, 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
- The official USGS event page — the source of record for every value above
- Did you feel it? Report it to USGS — reports go to USGS, not to us
- ShakeMap for this event, when USGS has produced one
QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.