Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.5md
Earthquake near Rutledge, TN
No earthquake was likely felt in Rutledge in the 24 hours to 7:29 am EST (12:29 UTC). The last one was M 2.3, in Rutledge, at 2:41 am EDT on 9 July 2026, estimated intensity III (weak) in town; 1 felt report to USGS. Every earthquake near Rutledge
This page: a magnitude 2.5 earthquake was recorded 5 km (3 mi) east-northeast of Rutledge, TN, at 5:13 am EDT on 29 April 2020 (09:13 UTC), 15 km deep. 69 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 5 km ENE of Rutledge, Tennessee
57 km (36 mi) NE of Knoxville, TN
- When
- 5:13 am EDT on 29 April 2020 ()
- Where
- 5 km (3 mi) east-northeast of Rutledge, TN · earthquakes near Rutledge
- Magnitude
- M 2.5 (md)
- Depth
- 15 km below the surface
- Felt
- 69 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Grainger County, 5 km SW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1434 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Rutledge, TN
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Rutledge, 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 43 km (27 mi) from the epicentre. In Rutledge, 5 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: Mascot 37 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 170 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.5 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 89,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 63,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 5.6× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.5 about 170 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 36.3037, -83.4638. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grainger County, TN | 5 km (3 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Grainger County |
| Hamblen County, TN | 20 km (12 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Hamblen County |
| Claiborne County, TN | 28 km (18 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Claiborne County |
| Jefferson County, TN | 28 km (18 mi) | S | earthquakes near Jefferson County |
| Hancock County, TN | 32 km (20 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Hancock County |
| Union County, TN | 33 km (21 mi) | W | earthquakes near Union County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
48 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.6 11 km SW of Middlesboro, Kentucky
- 2.2 10 km ENE of Knoxville, Tennessee
- 2.3 11 km ESE of Mascot, Tennessee
- 2.0 8 km ENE of Knoxville, Tennessee
- 2.3 16 km N of Maynardville, Tennessee
- 2.1 8 km ENE of Seymour, Tennessee
- 2.4 5 km NNE of Bean Station, Tennessee
- 2.4 5 km ENE of Harrogate, Tennessee
- 2.3 2 km ENE of Rutledge, Tennessee
- 2.1 9 km ENE of Rutledge, Tennessee
- 2.1 4 km WNW of Dandridge, Tennessee
- 1.8 12 km W of New Tazewell, Tennessee
- 2.1 7 km ENE of Rutledge, Tennessee
- 1.9 8 km WNW of Rutledge, Tennessee
- 2.4 2 km ESE of Rutledge, 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.