QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.8mb_lg

Earthquake near Lamar, CO

No earthquake was likely felt in Lamar in the 24 hours to 7:41 am MST (14:41 UTC). The last one was M 3.4, 237 km (147 mi) WSW, at 3:34 am MST on 8 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 2 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Lamar

This page: a magnitude 1.8 earthquake was recorded 44 km (28 mi) north-northwest of Lamar, CO, at 1:45 am MDT on 20 August 2026 (07:45 UTC), 5.0 km deep.

USGS: 6 km SW of Eads, Colorado

1:45 am MDT, Aug 20, 2026 · · 5.0 km deep · released about 15 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Kiowa County 10 kmCheyenne County 48 kmBent County 61 kmProwers County 67 kmCrowley County 83 kmLincoln County 84 kmGreeley County 90 kmKit Carson County 97 kmOtero County 99 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
1:45 am MDT on 20 August 2026 ()
Where
44 km (28 mi) north-northwest of Lamar, CO · earthquakes near Lamar
Magnitude
M 1.8 (mb_lg)
Depth
5.0 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Kiowa County, 10 km SE
Nearest mapped fault
Cheraw fault, 15 km from its surface trace — near is not the same as on
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 57 days ago

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 16 km (10 mi) from the epicentre. In Lamar, 44 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.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 15 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 1,000,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 710,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 63× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.8 about 15 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 38.4479, -102.8376. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Kiowa County, CO 10 km (6 mi) SE earthquakes near Kiowa County
Cheyenne County, CO 48 km (30 mi) NNE earthquakes near Cheyenne County
Bent County, CO 61 km (38 mi) SSW earthquakes near Bent County
Prowers County, CO 67 km (42 mi) SE earthquakes near Prowers County
Crowley County, CO 83 km (52 mi) W earthquakes near Crowley County
Lincoln County, CO 84 km (52 mi) NW earthquakes near Lincoln County

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

Aftershocks so far

No further earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

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.