QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.8md

Earthquake near Lugoff, SC

USGS: 5 km SSW of Lugoff, South Carolina

24 km (15 mi) NE of Columbia, SC · 115 km (72 mi) S of Charlotte, NC

1:24 am EDT, Jul 31, 2022 · · 0.7 km deep · released about 17 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Kershaw County 21 kmRichland County 24 kmSumter County 42 kmLee County 42 kmFairfield County 45 kmCalhoun County 56 kmLancaster County 56 kmLexington County 61 kmChester County 70 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
1:24 am EDT on 31 July 2022 ()
Where
6 km (4 mi) SSW of Lugoff, SC · earthquakes near Lugoff
Magnitude
M 1.8 (md)
Depth
0.7 km below the surface
Felt
19 reports · strongest reported intensity III
Nearest
Kershaw County, 21 km NNE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1452 days ago

A magnitude 1.8 earthquake was recorded 6 km (4 mi) SSW of Lugoff, SC, at 1:24 am EDT on 31 July 2022 (05:24 UTC). 19 people have reported feeling it to USGS. This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Camden, Woodfield, Blythewood, Dentsville, Stateburg, Oakland.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 17 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.8 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 870,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 620,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 55× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.8 about 17 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 34.1790, -80.7077. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Kershaw County, SC 21 km (13 mi) NNE earthquakes near Kershaw County
Richland County, SC 24 km (15 mi) SW earthquakes near Richland County
Sumter County, SC 42 km (26 mi) SE earthquakes near Sumter County
Lee County, SC 42 km (26 mi) E earthquakes near Lee County
Fairfield County, SC 45 km (28 mi) WNW earthquakes near Fairfield County
Calhoun County, SC 56 km (35 mi) S earthquakes near Calhoun County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 2.2 6 km E of Elgin, South Carolina
  2. 1.9 11 km N of Irmo, South Carolina
  3. 2.1 3 km W of Irmo, South Carolina
  4. 1.8 5 km WSW of Irmo, South Carolina
  5. 2.8 4 km WSW of Irmo, South Carolina
  6. 2.1 5 km SSW of Lugoff, South Carolina
  7. 2.7 5 km ESE of Elgin, South Carolina
  8. 2.0 7 km E of Elgin, South Carolina
  9. 1.8 9 km SSW of Kershaw, South Carolina
  10. 2.6 6 km E of Elgin, South Carolina
  11. 2.3 6 km E of Elgin, South Carolina
  12. 1.6 6 km ESE of Elgin, South Carolina
  13. 1.9 8 km SE of Elgin, South Carolina
  14. 2.0 7 km ESE of Elgin, South Carolina
  15. 2.5 6 km E of Elgin, 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

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.