QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.8ml

Earthquake near Cabazon, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Cabazon in the 24 hours to 12:16 pm PST (20:16 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 2.8 earthquake was recorded 8 km (5 mi) northeast of Cabazon, CA, at 10:30 am PDT on 12 May 2023 (17:30 UTC), 17 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 8km NE of Cabazon, CA

23 km (14 mi) ENE of Beaumont, CA · 135 km (84 mi) NNE of San Diego, CA

10:30 am PDT, May 12, 2023 · · 17 km deep · released about 430 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Riverside County 73 kmOrange County 102 kmSan Diego County 106 kmSan Bernardino County 110 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
10:30 am PDT on 12 May 2023 ()
Where
8 km (5 mi) northeast of Cabazon, CA · earthquakes near Cabazon
Magnitude
M 2.8 (ml)
Depth
17 km below the surface
Felt
1 report · strongest reported intensity I
Nearest
Riverside County, 73 km ESE
Nearest mapped fault
San Gorgonio Pass fault, 3 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 1209 days ago

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 20 km (12 mi) from the epicentre. In Cabazon, 8 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: Banning 14 km, intensity II · Morongo Valley 16 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 430 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.8 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 35,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 25,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 2.2× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.8 about 430 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 4.5 on 2018-05-08 — about 380 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 38 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 7.3 The 1992 Landers, California Earthquake · 37 km NE of this epicentre
  2. 6.7 The 1918 San Jacinto, California Earthquake · 33 km SW of this epicentre
  3. 6.3 The 1992 Big Bear, California Earthquake · 26 km NNW of this epicentre
  4. 6.2 3 km SE of San Bernardino, California · 50 km WNW of this epicentre
  5. 6.1 The 1992 Joshua Tree, California Earthquake · 39 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 33.9792, -116.7352. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Riverside County, CA 73 km (45 mi) ESE earthquakes near Riverside County
Orange County, CA 102 km (63 mi) WSW earthquakes near Orange County
San Diego County, CA 106 km (66 mi) S earthquakes near San Diego County
San Bernardino County, CA 110 km (68 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

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

  1. 1.8 8km SSW of Idyllwild, CA
  2. 1.7 11km N of Cabazon, CA
  3. 2.2 10km N of Banning, CA
  4. 2.5 5km NE of Anza, CA
  5. 1.7 12 km NNE of Cabazon, CA
  6. 1.5 12km W of Anza, CA
  7. 2.1 17km NE of Big Bear City, CA
  8. 2.8 3km NNE of Big Bear City, CA
  9. 2.5 2 km SE of Redlands, CA
  10. 2.3 4km N of Big Bear City, CA
  11. 1.6 4km N of Big Bear City, CA
  12. 2.0 6km N of Big Bear City, CA
  13. 1.9 4km NW of Banning, CA
  14. 1.6 8km N of Cabazon, CA
  15. 2.7 5km NW of San Jacinto, 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.