Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.7ml
10 km SE of Salt Spring Island, Canada
Yes. A magnitude 2.7 earthquake was recorded 10 km SE of Salt Spring Island, Canada, at 5:30 am PDT on 21 October 2025 (12:30 UTC), 12 km deep. 105 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
- When
- Magnitude
- M 2.7 (ml)
- Depth
- 12 km below the surface
- Felt
- 105 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- San Juan County, 35 km SE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 307 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Point Roberts, WA
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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 22 km (14 mi) from the epicentre. 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.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 340 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.7 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 45,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 32,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 2.8× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.7 about 340 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.
Where
Epicentre 48.7651, -123.3709. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Juan County, WA | 35 km (22 mi) | SE | earthquakes near San Juan County |
| Clallam County, WA | 82 km (51 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Clallam County |
| Island County, WA | 85 km (53 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Island County |
| Jefferson County, WA | 107 km (67 mi) | S | earthquakes near Jefferson County |
| Whatcom County, WA | 113 km (70 mi) | E | earthquakes near Whatcom County |
| Skagit County, WA | 118 km (73 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Skagit County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
29 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 0.9 7 km W of Orcas, Washington
- 1.3 4 km NNW of Victoria, Canada
- 1.2 11 km SW of Friday Harbor, Washington
- 1.8 2 km S of Colwood, Canada
- 0.7 3 km N of North Saanich, Canada
- 1.2 9 km NW of Friday Harbor, Washington
- 1.1 6 km W of Orcas, Washington
- 1.1 6 km W of Orcas, Washington
- 1.5 3 km N of Langford, Canada
- 0.9 2 km ENE of Six Mile, Canada
- 0.4 6 km ENE of Oak Bay, Canada
- 1.2 7 km N of Six Mile, Canada
- 1.4 10 km WSW of Friday Harbor, Washington
- 1.7 8 km SSE of Oak Bay, Canada
- 1.8 3 km WNW of Ladysmith, Canada
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.