Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.8md
Earthquake near Dyersburg, TN
No earthquake was likely felt in Dyersburg in the 24 hours to 8:09 am CST (14:09 UTC). The last one was M 2.0, 21 km (13 mi) NNE, at 11:37 am CDT on 19 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 1 felt report to USGS. Every earthquake near Dyersburg
This page: a magnitude 2.8 earthquake was recorded 9 km (5 mi) north of Dyersburg, TN, at 5:53 pm CST on 13 December 2020 (23:53 UTC), 11 km deep. 81 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 8 km N of Dyersburg, Tennessee
- When
- 5:53 pm CST on 13 December 2020 ()
- Where
- 9 km (5 mi) north of Dyersburg, TN · earthquakes near Dyersburg
- Magnitude
- M 2.8 (md)
- Depth
- 11 km below the surface
- Felt
- 81 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Dyer County, 6 km S
- Nearest mapped fault
- Reelfoot scarp and New Madrid seismic zone, 4 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 1625 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Dyersburg, TN
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Dyersburg, TN. 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 62 km (39 mi) from the epicentre. In Dyersburg, 9 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: Dyersburg 9 km, intensity III · Caruthersville 25 km, intensity III · Tiptonville 31 km, intensity III · Steele 39 km, intensity II · Portageville 44 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 490 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.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 31,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 22,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 1.9× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.8 about 490 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 36.1105, -89.3975. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dyer County, TN | 6 km (4 mi) | S | earthquakes near Dyer County |
| Lake County, TN | 26 km (16 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Lake County |
| Obion County, TN | 36 km (22 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Obion County |
| Pemiscot County, MO | 37 km (23 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Pemiscot County |
| Crockett County, TN | 40 km (25 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Crockett County |
| Gibson County, TN | 44 km (27 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Gibson County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
44 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.3 7 km ENE of Steele, Missouri
- 1.7 11 km S of Ridgely, Tennessee
- 1.7 6 km NW of Dyersburg, Tennessee
- 1.6 5 km NW of Tiptonville, Tennessee
- 1.8 7 km NNW of Dyersburg, Tennessee
- 1.5 5 km ESE of Marston, Missouri
- 1.6 5 km SSE of Ridgely, Tennessee
- 1.6 6 km ENE of Steele, Missouri
- 1.7 2 km S of Tiptonville, Tennessee
- 1.8 1 km SW of Ridgely, Tennessee
- 2.1 5 km WNW of Tiptonville, Tennessee
- 1.7 9 km NW of Tiptonville, Tennessee
- 2.0 southeastern Missouri
- 2.0 southeastern Missouri
- 1.8 10 km NNW of Dyersburg, Tennessee
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.