QuakeIndex

Earthquake · automatic estimate, may change

M 1.8ml

Earthquake near Los Angeles, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Los Angeles in the 24 hours to 4:25 am PST (12:25 UTC). The last one was M 3.2, 30 km (19 mi) S, at 12:44 am PDT on 9 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 1,090 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Los Angeles

This page: a magnitude 1.8 earthquake was recorded 34 km (21 mi) northwest of Los Angeles, CA, at 10:28 am PST on 31 January 2019 (18:28 UTC), 18 km deep. 5 people have reported feeling it to USGS. The magnitude and location are an automatic first estimate and may change.

USGS: 1km NE of Granada Hills, CA

30 km (18 mi) NNW of Los Angeles, CA · 15 km (10 mi) S of Santa Clarita, CA

10:28 am PST, Jan 31, 2019 · · 18 km deep · released about 16 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Los Angeles County 23 kmVentura County 60 kmOrange County 94 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
10:28 am PST on 31 January 2019 ()
Where
34 km (21 mi) northwest of Los Angeles, CA · earthquakes near Los Angeles
Magnitude
M 1.8 (ml)
Depth
18 km below the surface
Felt
5 reports · strongest reported intensity III
Nearest
Los Angeles County, 23 km ESE
Nearest mapped fault
Sierra Madre fault, 5 km from its surface trace — near is not the same as on
Status
Automatic — a machine’s first estimate, which may change

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2842 days ago

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

At this magnitude and depth it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Los Angeles, 34 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.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Santa Clarita, Stevenson Ranch, Hidden Hills, Burbank, Valencia, Topanga.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 16 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.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 970,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 680,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 61× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.8 about 16 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 22 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.7 Northridge, California, earthquake · 8 km SSW of this epicentre
  2. 6.6 1971 San Fernando Earthquake, California · 19 km NE of this epicentre
  3. 5.9 The 1987 Whittier Narrows, California Earthquake · 45 km ESE of this epicentre
  4. 5.9 1km ENE of Granada Hills, California · 0 km SSW of this epicentre
  5. 5.8 10km SSW of Agua Dulce, CA · 19 km NE 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 34.2782, -118.4910. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Los Angeles County, CA 23 km (14 mi) ESE earthquakes near Los Angeles County
Ventura County, CA 60 km (37 mi) W earthquakes near Ventura County
Orange County, CA 94 km (58 mi) SE earthquakes near Orange County
Kern County, CA 121 km (75 mi) N earthquakes near Kern 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 1km N of Huntington Park, CA
  2. 1.8 1km ENE of Gardena, CA
  3. 1.6 15km N of Fillmore, CA
  4. 1.9 2km SSW of La Canada Flintridge, CA
  5. 1.9 17km W of Manhattan Beach, CA
  6. 1.6 1km NNW of Downey, CA
  7. 1.7 4km WSW of Marina del Rey, CA
  8. 1.7 3km WNW of Inglewood, CA
  9. 1.5 1km NE of Westwood, CA
  10. 1.8 1km WNW of Century City, CA
  11. 2.1 0km NNW of Century City, CA
  12. 1.5 0km NNW of Century City, CA
  13. 1.6 0km WNW of Century City, CA
  14. 2.9 0km SSW of Century City, CA
  15. 1.5 2km WNW of Willowbrook, 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.