Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.7md
Earthquake near Cairo, IL
No earthquake was likely felt in Cairo in the 24 hours to 7:02 am CST (13:02 UTC). The last one was M 3.5, 204 km (126 mi) NNE, at 2:05 am CDT on 29 June 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 392 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Cairo
This page: a magnitude 2.7 earthquake was recorded 5 km (3 mi) south-southwest of Cairo, IL, at 5:25 pm CDT on 6 April 2017 (22:25 UTC), 6.8 km deep. 4 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 4 km SSW of Cairo, Illinois
- When
- 5:25 pm CDT on 6 April 2017 ()
- Where
- 5 km (3 mi) south-southwest of Cairo, IL · earthquakes near Cairo
- Illinois today
- every earthquake in Illinois in the last 24 hours
- Magnitude
- M 2.7 (md)
- Depth
- 6.8 km below the surface
- Felt
- 4 reports · strongest reported intensity II
- Nearest
- Mississippi County, 18 km SSW
- Nearest mapped fault
- Reelfoot scarp and New Madrid seismic zone, 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 3428 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Cairo, IL
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Cairo, IL. 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 55 km (34 mi) from the epicentre. In Cairo, 5 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: Charleston 15 km, intensity III · East Prairie 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 320 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.7 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 48,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 34,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 3× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.7 about 320 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 since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.
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 36.9683, -89.1975. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi County, MO | 18 km (11 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Mississippi County |
| Ballard County, KY | 19 km (12 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Ballard County |
| Carlisle County, KY | 23 km (14 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Carlisle County |
| Alexander County, IL | 27 km (17 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Alexander County |
| Pulaski County, IL | 28 km (18 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Pulaski County |
| Scott County, MO | 34 km (21 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Scott County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
10 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.0 0 km S of Commerce, Missouri
- 2.0 5 km SSE of Bertrand, Missouri
- 2.3 5 km WSW of Pinhook, Missouri
- 1.6 9 km SE of Matthews, Missouri
- 2.1 10 km N of New Madrid, Missouri
- 2.4 4 km SW of Bardwell, KY
- 2.3 10 km SSE of Matthews, Missouri
- 1.6 southeastern Missouri
- 1.7 8 km ESE of Matthews, Missouri
- 3.3 9 km ESE of Wyatt, Missouri
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.