Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.2ml
Earthquake near Cabazon, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Cabazon in the 24 hours to 6:50 am PST (14:50 UTC). The last one was M 2.8, 20 km (13 mi) SW, at 8:30 pm PDT on 14 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 87 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Cabazon
This page: a magnitude 3.2 earthquake was recorded 9 km (6 mi) north-northwest of Cabazon, CA, at 4:28 pm PST on 21 February 2021 (00:28 UTC), 9.8 km deep. 95 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 9km NNW of Cabazon, CA
19 km (12 mi) NE of Beaumont, CA · 148 km (92 mi) E of Los Angeles, CA
- When
- 4:28 pm PST on 21 February 2021 ()
- Where
- 9 km (6 mi) north-northwest of Cabazon, CA · earthquakes near Cabazon
- Magnitude
- M 3.2 (ml)
- Depth
- 9.8 km below the surface
- Felt
- 95 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- Riverside County, 80 km ESE
- Nearest mapped fault
- San Andreas 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 1606 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Cabazon, CA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Cabazon, 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 small earthquake. Shaking like this is often felt indoors nearby and very rarely causes damage.
At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 45 km (28 mi) from the epicentre. In Cabazon, 9 km away, the estimate is intensity III (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: Banning 10 km, intensity III · Beaumont 17 km, intensity III · Morongo Valley 22 km, intensity II · Yucaipa 22 km, intensity II · San Jacinto 28 km, intensity II · Desert Hot Springs 28 km, intensity II · Valle Vista 29 km, intensity II · Big Bear Lake 29 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 1,800 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.2 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 180,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 8,200× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 5,800× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.2 about 1,800 lb of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 1.9× more
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 4.5 on 2018-05-08 — about 89 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 37 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 7.3 The 1992 Landers, California Earthquake · 41 km ENE of this epicentre
- 6.7 The 1918 San Jacinto, California Earthquake · 30 km SSW of this epicentre
- 6.3 The 1992 Big Bear, California Earthquake · 23 km N of this epicentre
- 6.2 3 km SE of San Bernardino, California · 43 km WNW of this epicentre
- 6.1 The 1992 Joshua Tree, California Earthquake · 45 km E 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 33.9977, -116.8083. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverside County, CA | 80 km (50 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Riverside County |
| Orange County, CA | 96 km (60 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Orange County |
| San Diego County, CA | 108 km (67 mi) | S | earthquakes near San Diego County |
| San Bernardino County, CA | 111 km (69 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near San Bernardino County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
55 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.2 7km N of Lake Arrowhead, CA
- 1.7 12km N of Banning, CA
- 1.7 12km N of Banning, CA
- 1.8 12km N of Banning, CA
- 1.7 12km N of Banning, CA
- 1.8 12km N of Banning, CA
- 1.7 12km N of Banning, CA
- 1.8 9km NNW of Anza, CA
- 2.1 8km SSW of Idyllwild, CA
- 1.9 8km SSW of Idyllwild, CA
- 1.6 9km S of Banning, CA
- 1.5 10km E of Cabazon, CA
- 2.0 6km SSW of Redlands, CA
- 1.9 9km N of Cabazon, CA
- 1.6 3km NW of Valle Vista, 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.