Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.6ml
Earthquake near Banning, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Banning in the 24 hours to 6:00 am PST (14:00 UTC). The last one was M 2.8, 15 km (10 mi) SSW, at 8:30 pm PDT on 14 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 87 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Banning
This page: a magnitude 3.6 earthquake was recorded 4 km (2 mi) south of Banning, CA, at 10:57 am PST on 17 February 2026 (18:57 UTC), 14 km deep. 399 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 4 km S of Banning, CA
8 km (5 mi) ENE of Beaumont, CA · 143 km (89 mi) E of Los Angeles, CA
- When
- 10:57 am PST on 17 February 2026 ()
- Where
- 4 km (2 mi) south of Banning, CA · earthquakes near Banning
- Magnitude
- M 3.6 (ml)
- Depth
- 14 km below the surface
- Felt
- 399 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Measured shaking
- intensity IV (ShakeMap)
- Nearest
- Riverside County, 82 km ESE
- Nearest mapped fault
- San Gorgonio Pass fault, 5 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 133 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Banning, CA
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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 68 km (42 mi) from the epicentre. In Banning, 4 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 4 km, intensity III · Beaumont 11 km, intensity III · San Jacinto 15 km, intensity III · Valle Vista 16 km, intensity III · Hemet 19 km, intensity III · Idyllwild 22 km, intensity III · Yucaipa 22 km, intensity III · Palm Springs 31 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 3.8 tons of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.6 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 45,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,400× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.6 about 3.8 tons of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 7.9× 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 22 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 25 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.7 The 1918 San Jacinto, California Earthquake · 17 km SSW of this epicentre
- 6.3 The 1992 Big Bear, California Earthquake · 35 km N of this epicentre
- 6.2 3 km SE of San Bernardino, California · 42 km WNW of this epicentre
- 6.0 The 1986 North Palm Springs, California Earthquake · 27 km ENE of this epicentre
- 5.7 3km ESE of Yucca Valley, California · 49 km ENE 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 33.8930, -116.8688. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverside County, CA | 82 km (51 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Riverside County |
| Orange County, CA | 87 km (54 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Orange County |
| San Diego County, CA | 97 km (60 mi) | S | earthquakes near San Diego County |
| San Bernardino County, CA | 124 km (77 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.
- 1.8 8 km ESE of Running Springs, CA
- 3.1 7 km NNW of Banning, CA
- 1.5 4 km SSE of Redlands, CA
- 1.6 4 km SSE of Redlands, CA
- 2.6 4 km SSE of Redlands, CA
- 2.7 4 km SSE of Redlands, CA
- 1.7 3 km ESE of Loma Linda, CA
- 1.5 5 km E of Calimesa, CA
- 1.8 11 km ENE of Aguanga, CA
- 1.5 4 km SSE of Redlands, CA
- 1.6 4 km SSE of Redlands, CA
- 1.6 8 km WNW of San Jacinto, CA
- 2.1 10 km SW of Idyllwild, CA
- 1.9 11 km ENE of Big Bear City, CA
- 1.7 8 km ENE of Big Bear City, 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.