Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.1md
Earthquake near Poplar Bluff, MO
No earthquake was likely felt in Poplar Bluff in the 24 hours to 4:56 pm CST (22:56 UTC). The last one was M 2.4, 23 km (14 mi) WNW, at 4:36 pm CDT on 17 September 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Poplar Bluff
This page: a magnitude 3.1 earthquake was recorded 26 km (16 mi) northeast of Poplar Bluff, MO, at 9:37 pm CDT on 5 September 2025 (02:37 UTC), 5.8 km deep. 75 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 4 km S of Puxico, Missouri
- When
- 9:37 pm CDT on 5 September 2025 ()
- Where
- 26 km (16 mi) northeast of Poplar Bluff, MO · earthquakes near Poplar Bluff
- Missouri today
- every earthquake in Missouri in the last 24 hours
- Magnitude
- M 3.1 (md)
- Depth
- 5.8 km below the surface
- Felt
- 75 reports · strongest reported intensity V
- Nearest
- Stoddard County, 20 km ESE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Western Lowlands liquefaction features, 14 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 346 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Poplar Bluff, MO
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Poplar Bluff, MO. 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 78 km (48 mi) from the epicentre. In Poplar Bluff, 26 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: Poplar Bluff 26 km, intensity III · Malden 43 km, intensity III. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 1,200 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.1 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 280,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 12,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 8,800× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.1 about 1,200 lb of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 1.3× more
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 4.0 on 2021-11-18 — about 25 times the energy of this one.
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 36.9058, -90.1662. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stoddard County, MO | 20 km (13 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Stoddard County |
| Butler County, MO | 30 km (19 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Butler County |
| Wayne County, MO | 34 km (21 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Wayne County |
| Bollinger County, MO | 48 km (30 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Bollinger County |
| Scott County, MO | 55 km (34 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Scott County |
| New Madrid County, MO | 57 km (36 mi) | SE | earthquakes near New Madrid County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
13 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.4 14 km SE of Ellsinore, Missouri
- 2.1 12 km ENE of Greenville, Missouri
- 2.1 6 km W of Parma, Missouri
- 1.9 6 km W of Parma, Missouri
- 1.8 4 km S of Bernie, Missouri
- 2.9 14 km SSW of Williamsville, Missouri
- 2.3 8 km WSW of Bernie, Missouri
- 2.4 7 km W of Williamsville, Missouri
- 2.6 12 km E of Williamsville, Missouri
- 1.6 8 km NNE of Parma, Missouri
- 1.8 2 km NNW of Parma, Missouri
- 2.6 5 km SW of Puxico, Missouri
- 2.3 1 km W of Risco, 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.