M3.5 Earthquake 2 km ESE of Falls City, Texas — February 23, 2024
2024-02-23 15:19:32 UTC (2024-02-23) · approx. 8:19 AM UTC-7 local
Felt by 15 people across nearby locations.
On February 23, 2024 at 15:19 UTC, a magnitude 3.5 shallow crustal earthquake struck 2 km ESE of Falls City, Texas, at a depth of 7.7 km and coordinates 28.9770°, -97.9900°. The earthquake was reported felt by 15 peopleacross nearby locations, with a maximum shaking intensity of Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) 3.6 (light). This earthquake was detected by 23 seismic stations with excellent location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 195, placing it among routine seismic activity.
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 3.5 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 2.7 metric tons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 157 m — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
The epicenter is located in Texas, a region characterized by a mix of natural intraplate seismicity and induced events in the Permian Basin linked to wastewater disposal. View all earthquakes in Texas.
Learn more: Magnitude scale · Aftershock sequences
ShakeMap — predicted shaking intensity
Modeled ground-motion intensity contoured on the Modified Mercalli scale (MMI). Computed by the USGS from the moment-tensor solution and regional ground-motion prediction equations.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey ShakeMap. View interactive ShakeMap on USGS
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 15 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report
Earthquake Details
-97.9900°E
Technical Information
Nearby Earthquakes (Last 7 Days)
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 3.5 earthquake near Falls City, Texas?
The magnitude 3.5 earthquake that struck 2 km ESE of Falls City, Texas on February 23, 2024 at 15:19 UTC had a depth of 7.7 km. It was felt by 15 people with maximum shaking intensity of MMI 3.6 (light). For context, this was a minor earthquake typically detected only by instruments.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at 28.9770°, -97.9900°, which is 2 km ESE of Falls City, Texas. View all earthquakes in Texas.
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 3.5 earthquakes can continue for several days and gradually diminish over time.
Has Texas had earthquakes this big before?
The largest recorded earthquake in Texas was the M5.8 Valentine earthquake of August 16, 1931. Today's magnitude 3.5 event is significantly smaller than that historical record.
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Location
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: tx2024dtzz). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2024, February 23, 2024). M3.5 Earthquake 2 km ESE of Falls City, Texas — February 23, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2025 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/tx2024dtzz/