QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.8ml

Earthquake near Pāhala, HI

No earthquake was likely felt in Pāhala in the 24 hours to 1:54 pm HST (23:54 UTC). The last one was M 2.6, 6 km (4 mi) S, at 7:36 pm HST on 8 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 1 felt report to USGS. Every earthquake near Pāhala

This page: a magnitude 2.8 earthquake was recorded 3 km (2 mi) south-southwest of Pāhala, HI, at 11:36 am HST on 17 February 2024 (21:36 UTC), 34 km deep. 3 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 3 km SSW of Pāhala, Hawaii

11:36 am HST, Feb 17, 2024 · · 34 km deep · released about 450 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Pāhala Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Hawaii County 47 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
11:36 am HST on 17 February 2024 ()
Where
3 km (2 mi) south-southwest of Pāhala, HI · earthquakes near Pāhala
Hawaii today
every earthquake in Hawaii in the last 24 hours
Magnitude
M 2.8 (ml)
Depth
34 km below the surface
Felt
3 reports · strongest reported intensity II
Nearest
Hawaii County, 47 km N
Nearest mapped fault
Ka'oiki-Honu'apo fault system, 2 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 933 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 it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Pāhala, 3 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: Discovery Harbor.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 450 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 34,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 24,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 2.1× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.8 about 450 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 6.2 on 2021-10-10 — about 140,000 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 43 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.7 22 km W of Volcano, Hawaii · 28 km N of this epicentre
  2. 6.4 Kaoiki area, Hawaii · 30 km NNE of this epicentre
  3. 6.3 20 km SSW of Honaunau-Napoopoo, Hawaii · 46 km WNW of this epicentre
  4. 6.2 8 km SW of Volcano, Hawaii · 32 km NE of this epicentre
  5. 6.2 21 km N of Pahala, Hawaii · 25 km N 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 19.1783, -155.4953. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Hawaii County, HI 47 km (29 mi) N earthquakes near Hawaii County

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.7 9 km E of Pāhala, Hawaii
  2. 2.0 7 km E of Pāhala, Hawaii
  3. 1.5 7 km WNW of Volcano, Hawaii
  4. 1.8 3 km SSW of Pāhala, Hawaii
  5. 1.7 5 km NW of Hawaiian Ocean View, Hawaii
  6. 3.0 3 km SSW of Pāhala, Hawaii
  7. 2.1 11 km NE of Pāhala, Hawaii
  8. 2.1 9 km ENE of Pāhala, Hawaii
  9. 2.3 11 km NE of Pāhala, Hawaii
  10. 1.8 11 km ENE of Pāhala, Hawaii
  11. 2.3 2 km WSW of Pāhala, Hawaii
  12. 2.3 9 km E of Pāhala, Hawaii
  13. 2.4 4 km SSW of Pāhala, Hawaii
  14. 1.8 45 km SE of Naalehu, Hawaii
  15. 2.0 4 km SSW of Pāhala, Hawaii

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.