5.6

M5.6 Earthquake 208 km SW of Port McNeill, CanadaJuly 20, 2026

2026-07-20 06:41:30 UTC (18 hours ago) · approx. 9:41 PM UTC-9 local

Felt by 21 people across nearby locations.

MagnitudeM5.6(mww)
Time06:41 UTC9:41 PM UTC-9
Depth10.0 kmshallow crustal
Coordinates49.408°, -129.342°
Felt by21DYFI responses· max MMI 3.5
Status✓ Reviewed by USGS· green PAGER
green Alertno significant casualties or damage expected

On July 20, 2026 at 06:41 UTC, a magnitude 5.6 shallow crustal earthquake struck 208 km SW of Port McNeill, Canada, at a depth of 10.0 km and coordinates 49.4076°, -129.3420°. The earthquake was reported felt by 21 peopleacross nearby locations, with a maximum shaking intensity of Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) 3.5 (light). The USGS PAGER system issued a green alert level for this event, indicating no significant casualties or damage expected. This earthquake was detected by 91 seismic stations with good location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 490, placing it among routine seismic activity. The nearest populated place is Port Hardy (population 4,132).

Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 5.6 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 4 kilotons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 4.4 km — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.

Nearest Populated Places

Port Hardypop. 4,132
MMI 2.9 (weak)
Port McNeillpop. 2,064
MMI 2.7 (weak)
Map showing earthquake epicenter at 49.41°, -129.34°

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.

USGS ShakeMap intensity contours for the M5.6 earthquake near 208 km SW of Port McNeill, Canada

Source: U.S. Geological Survey ShakeMap. View interactive ShakeMap on USGS

Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking

Aggregated felt-report intensity from 21 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.

USGS DYFI community-reported intensity map for the M5.6 earthquake near 208 km SW of Port McNeill, Canada

Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report

Population exposure (USGS PAGER)

Estimated population that experienced each level of shaking. Based on the USGS PAGER rapid impact assessment, which combines ShakeMap output with global population grids.

Shaking intensity (MMI)DescriptionPopulation exposed
MMI 3weak12,427

Earthquake Details

Magnitude
5.6 mww
Depth
10.0 km
shallow crustal
Location
49.4076°N
-129.3420°E
Felt Reports
21
DYFI responses
Intensity (MMI)
3.5
light
Community Intensity
3.8
CDI from reports

Technical Information

Event ID
us7000t1w2
Event Type
earthquake
Status
✓ Reviewed
Significance
490
Stations Used
91
Azimuthal Gap
123.0°
Min Station Distance
1.460°
RMS Residual
1.27 sec
Last Updated
2026-07-21 00:01:38 UTC

Common Questions

How strong was the magnitude 5.6 earthquake near Port McNeill, Canada?

The magnitude 5.6 earthquake that struck 208 km SW of Port McNeill, Canada on July 20, 2026 at 06:41 UTC had a depth of 10.0 km. It was felt by 21 people with maximum shaking intensity of MMI 3.5 (light). For context, this was a moderate earthquake that could be widely felt.

Where did the earthquake occur?

The earthquake epicenter was located at 49.4076°, -129.3420°, which is 208 km SW of Port McNeill, Canada. The nearest populated place is Port Hardy (population 4,132).

Were there aftershocks?

Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 5.6 earthquakes can continue for days to weeks and gradually diminish over time.

Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us7000t1w2). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.

Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2026, July 20, 2026). M5.6 Earthquake 208 km SW of Port McNeill, CanadaJuly 20, 2026. Retrieved July 21, 2026 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us7000t1w2/