QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.4md

Earthquake near Boonville, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Boonville in the 24 hours to 5:51 pm PST (01:51 UTC). The last one was M 4.0, 65 km (41 mi) NNE, at 5:01 am PDT on 28 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 14 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Boonville

This page: a magnitude 2.4 earthquake was recorded 6 km (4 mi) south of Boonville, CA, at 8:38 pm PDT on 18 September 2016 (03:38 UTC), 1.6 km deep. 8 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 6 km S of Boonville, California

81 km (50 mi) NW of Santa Rosa, CA

8:38 pm PDT, Sep 18, 2016 · · 1.6 km deep · released about 120 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Mendocino County 54 kmLake County 57 kmSonoma County 62 kmColusa County 102 kmNapa County 104 kmGlenn County 111 kmMarin County 114 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
8:38 pm PDT on 18 September 2016 ()
Where
6 km (4 mi) south of Boonville, CA · earthquakes near Boonville
Magnitude
M 2.4 (md)
Depth
1.6 km below the surface
Felt
8 reports · strongest reported intensity III
Nearest
Mendocino County, 54 km N
Nearest mapped fault
San Andreas fault, 20 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 3561 days ago

This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 21 km (13 mi) from the epicentre. In Boonville, 6 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: Boonville 6 km, intensity III. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 120 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.4 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 120,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 86,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 7.7× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.4 about 120 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

No earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded within 50 km since our catalogue begins in 2016.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists one earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 5.2 6 km ESE of Talmage, California · 30 km NE 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 38.9527, -123.3793. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Mendocino County, CA 54 km (33 mi) N earthquakes near Mendocino County
Lake County, CA 57 km (36 mi) ENE earthquakes near Lake County
Sonoma County, CA 62 km (38 mi) SE earthquakes near Sonoma County
Colusa County, CA 102 km (63 mi) ENE earthquakes near Colusa County
Napa County, CA 104 km (65 mi) ESE earthquakes near Napa County
Glenn County, CA 111 km (69 mi) NE earthquakes near Glenn County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.5 9 km S of Kelseyville, California
  2. 1.9 9 km WNW of Cobb, California
  3. 1.7 11 km WNW of Cobb, California
  4. 1.5 10 km WNW of Cobb, California
  5. 3.0 10 km W of Cobb, California
  6. 5.0 10 km W of Cobb, California
  7. 1.6 4 km ENE of Hopland, California
  8. 2.3 10 km W of Cobb, California
  9. 1.8 9 km W of Cobb, California
  10. 1.7 9 km WNW of Cobb, California
  11. 1.8 10 km NE of Philo, California
  12. 2.0 10 km W of Cobb, California
  13. 2.0 3 km ESE of Hopland, California
  14. 2.4 7 km NNE of Hopland, California
  15. 2.4 7 km NNE of Hopland, California

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.