Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.9ml
Earthquake near Waikoloa, HI
Yes. A magnitude 2.9 earthquake was recorded 13 km (8 mi) south-southwest of Waikoloa, HI, at 3:49 pm HST on 18 October 2026 (01:49 UTC), 13 km deep. No felt reports to USGS yet.
USGS: 13 km SSW of Waikoloa, Hawaii
- When
- 3:49 pm HST on 18 October 2026 ()
- Where
- 13 km (8 mi) south-southwest of Waikoloa, HI · earthquakes near Waikoloa
- Magnitude
- M 2.9 (ml)
- Depth
- 13 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Hawaii County, 42 km SE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2 hours ago
Earthquake alerts for Waikoloa, HI
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Waikoloa, HI. 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 28 km (17 mi) from the epicentre. In Waikoloa, 13 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: Waikoloa 13 km, intensity II · Kalaoa 19 km, intensity II · Hōlualoa 26 km, intensity II · Kailua-Kona 27 km, intensity II · Waimea 27 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 610 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.9 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 25,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 18,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 1.6× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.9 about 610 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 5.3 on 2019-04-14 — about 5,100 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 9 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.7 14 km SW of Puako, Hawaii · 13 km WNW of this epicentre
- 6.5 Hualālai area, Hawaii · 20 km WSW of this epicentre
- 6.0 20 km SW of Hawi, Hawaii · 37 km NNW of this epicentre
- 5.6 3 km NW of Kalaoa, Hawaii · 20 km WSW of this epicentre
- 5.6 30 km WNW of Volcano, Hawaii · 47 km SE 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 19.8242, -155.8287. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii County, HI | 42 km (26 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Hawaii County |
| Maui County, HI | 140 km (87 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Maui County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
No further earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
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.