Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.6md
Earthquake near Cleveland, TN
No earthquake was likely felt in Cleveland in the 24 hours to 5:04 am EST (10:04 UTC). The last one was M 2.3, 16 km (10 mi) ENE, at 2:03 am EDT on 3 August 2025, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 6 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Cleveland
This page: a magnitude 2.6 earthquake was recorded 21 km (13 mi) north of Cleveland, TN, at 10:38 am EDT on 17 June 2016 (14:38 UTC), 18 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 12 km WNW of Charleston, Tennessee
46 km (29 mi) NE of Chattanooga, TN · 19 km (12 mi) N of Cleveland, TN
- When
- 10:38 am EDT on 17 June 2016 ()
- Where
- 21 km (13 mi) north of Cleveland, TN · earthquakes near Cleveland
- Magnitude
- M 2.6 (md)
- Depth
- 18 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity II
- Nearest
- Meigs County, 19 km NNE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1561 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Cleveland, TN
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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 47 km (29 mi) from the epicentre. In Cleveland, 21 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: Decatur 20 km, intensity II · Athens 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 230 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 65,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 46,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 4.1× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.6 about 230 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 35.3502, -84.8732. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meigs County, TN | 19 km (12 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Meigs County |
| Bradley County, TN | 22 km (14 mi) | S | earthquakes near Bradley County |
| McMinn County, TN | 24 km (15 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near McMinn County |
| Rhea County, TN | 29 km (18 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Rhea County |
| Hamilton County, TN | 36 km (23 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Hamilton County |
| Polk County, TN | 40 km (25 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Polk County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
53 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.8 Tennessee
- 1.7 11 km NNE of Decatur, Tennessee
- 2.1 10 km NNE of Decatur, Tennessee
- 1.9 11 km NNE of Decatur, Tennessee
- 3.0 10 km NNE of Decatur, Tennessee
- 4.4 12 km NNE of Decatur, Tennessee
- 2.7 12 km NW of Sweetwater, Tennessee
- 1.9 2 km N of Graysville, Tennessee
- 1.7 0 km E of Graysville, Tennessee
- 1.9 5 km N of Benton, Tennessee
- 1.6 6 km SE of Sweetwater, Tennessee
- 1.8 Tennessee
- 2.7 6 km ESE of Englewood, Tennessee
- 2.5 3 km E of Ridgeside, Tennessee
- 2.2 1 km WNW of Niota, 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.