Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.6md
Earthquake near Columbia, SC
No earthquake was likely felt in Columbia in the 24 hours to 9:15 am EST (14:15 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 1.6 earthquake was recorded 41 km (25 mi) northwest of Columbia, SC, at 12:15 am EST on 13 December 2023 (05:15 UTC), 6.4 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 3 km WNW of Jenkinsville, South Carolina
46 km (29 mi) NW of Columbia, SC · 113 km (70 mi) SSW of Charlotte, NC
- When
- 12:15 am EST on 13 December 2023 ()
- Where
- 41 km (25 mi) northwest of Columbia, SC · earthquakes near Columbia
- South Carolina today
- every earthquake in South Carolina in the last 24 hours
- Magnitude
- M 1.6 (md)
- Depth
- 6.4 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity II
- Nearest
- Fairfield County, 23 km NE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 998 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 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 4 km (2 mi) from the epicentre. In Columbia, 41 km away, the estimate is intensity I (not felt). 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: Chapin, Lake Murray of Richland, Prosperity, Winnsboro Mills, Irmo, Winnsboro.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 7.6 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.6 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,000,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,400,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 130× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.6 about 7.6 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 34.2753, -81.3242. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fairfield County, SC | 23 km (14 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Fairfield County |
| Newberry County, SC | 25 km (16 mi) | W | earthquakes near Newberry County |
| Lexington County, SC | 43 km (27 mi) | S | earthquakes near Lexington County |
| Saluda County, SC | 48 km (30 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Saluda County |
| Richland County, SC | 48 km (30 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Richland County |
| Chester County, SC | 48 km (30 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Chester County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
15 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.6 9 km NNE of Jenkinsville, South Carolina
- 1.9 19 km NW of Winnsboro, South Carolina
- 1.9 11 km N of Irmo, South Carolina
- 2.4 18 km NW of Winnsboro, South Carolina
- 2.3 17 km NW of Winnsboro, South Carolina
- 1.7 19 km S of Gayle Mill, South Carolina
- 2.3 18 km NW of Winnsboro, 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
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.