QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.1md

Earthquake near Hazel Green, AL

No earthquake was likely felt in Hazel Green in the 24 hours to 11:35 am CST (17:35 UTC). The last one was M 4.9, 710 km (441 mi) WSW, at 5:30 am CST on 5 March 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 1,576 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Hazel Green

This page: a magnitude 2.1 earthquake was recorded 2 km (1 mi) north of Hazel Green, AL, at 5:12 pm CDT on 26 August 2018 (22:12 UTC), 5.0 km deep.

USGS: 2 km N of Hazel Green, Alabama

30 km (19 mi) NNE of Huntsville, AL

5:12 pm CDT, Aug 26, 2018 · · 5.0 km deep · released about 47 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Madison County 21 kmLincoln County 21 kmLimestone County 40 kmMoore County 42 kmFranklin County 49 kmGiles County 50 kmJackson County 58 kmMarshall County 60 kmMorgan County 61 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
5:12 pm CDT on 26 August 2018 ()
Where
2 km (1 mi) north of Hazel Green, AL · earthquakes near Hazel Green
Magnitude
M 2.1 (md)
Depth
5.0 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Madison County, 21 km S
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2998 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 29 km (18 mi) from the epicentre. In Hazel Green, 2 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.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Meridianville, Moores Mill, New Market, Park City, Harvest, Fayetteville.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 47 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.1 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 320,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 230,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 20× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.1 about 47 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 34.9525, -86.5757. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Madison County, AL 21 km (13 mi) S earthquakes near Madison County
Lincoln County, TN 21 km (13 mi) N earthquakes near Lincoln County
Limestone County, AL 40 km (25 mi) WSW earthquakes near Limestone County
Moore County, TN 42 km (26 mi) NNE earthquakes near Moore County
Franklin County, TN 49 km (30 mi) ENE earthquakes near Franklin County
Giles County, TN 50 km (31 mi) NW earthquakes near Giles County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 2.4 3 km SSW of Park City, Tennessee
  2. 2.4 5 km SSW of Gurley, Alabama
  3. 2.7 6 km NW of Hazel Green, Alabama
  4. 2.6 13 km SE of Triana, Alabama
  5. 2.4 11 km W of Elkton, Tennessee
  6. 2.3 10 km ESE of Moores Mill, Alabama

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.