Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.6md
Earthquake near Columbia, SC
No earthquake was likely felt in Columbia in the 24 hours to 7:30 am EST (12:30 UTC). The last one was M 2.1, 20 km (12 mi) WNW, at 2:32 am EDT on 19 March 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 110 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Columbia
This page: a magnitude 2.6 earthquake was recorded 40 km (25 mi) west-southwest of Columbia, SC, at 6:53 pm EDT on 31 May 2021 (22:53 UTC), 1.7 km deep. 326 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 4 km SW of Summit, South Carolina
53 km (33 mi) WSW of Columbia, SC
- When
- 6:53 pm EDT on 31 May 2021 ()
- Where
- 40 km (25 mi) west-southwest of Columbia, SC · earthquakes near Columbia
- South Carolina today
- every earthquake in South Carolina in the last 24 hours
- Magnitude
- M 2.6 (md)
- Depth
- 1.7 km below the surface
- Felt
- 326 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- Lexington County, 16 km E
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1871 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Columbia, SC
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Columbia, SC. 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 49 km (30 mi) from the epicentre. In Columbia, 40 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.
Likely felt in: Columbia 40 km, intensity II · Dentsville 49 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 220 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.6 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 70,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 50,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 4.4× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.6 about 220 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 33.8922, -81.4483. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lexington County, SC | 16 km (10 mi) | E | earthquakes near Lexington County |
| Saluda County, SC | 29 km (18 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Saluda County |
| Aiken County, SC | 42 km (26 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Aiken County |
| Newberry County, SC | 46 km (29 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Newberry County |
| Edgefield County, SC | 49 km (30 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Edgefield County |
| Richland County, SC | 53 km (33 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Richland County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
14 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.9 11 km N of Irmo, South Carolina
- 2.1 3 km W of Irmo, South Carolina
- 2.2 5 km SSE of Lake Murray of Richland, South Carolina
- 3.0 5 km WSW of Irmo, South Carolina
- 1.8 5 km WSW of Irmo, South Carolina
- 2.0 5 km WSW of Irmo, South Carolina
- 2.8 4 km WSW of Irmo, South Carolina
- 1.9 4 km NNW of Jenkinsville, South Carolina
- 1.8 4 km NNW of Jenkinsville, South Carolina
- 1.6 3 km WNW of Jenkinsville, South Carolina
- 1.6 4 km NE of Jenkinsville, South Carolina
- 1.7 3 km SSE of Jenkinsville, South Carolina
- 1.8 1 km NE of Cayce, South Carolina
- 2.0 5 km SSW of Summit, South Carolina
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.