6.3 magnitude earthquake hits off of Oregon coast
Aug 29, 2019, 9:30 AM
A sizable earthquake struck off the coast of Oregon Thursday morning. (U.S. Geological Survey)
(U.S. Geological Survey)
A 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of southern Oregon early Thursday morning.
MyNorthwest’s earthquake tracker
The earthquake hit around 8 a.m., roughly 200 miles west of Bandon, Oregon, with a depth of around 7 miles. At this time, a resulting tsunami is not expected to occur.
This is happening during an active period for the Cascadia Subduction Zone. Over the last two weeks, over 4,500 tremors have been picked up by the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network. This is something that happens regularly every 14 months in the Puget Sound region. It operates on a separate cycle in Oregon and Northern California.
University of Washington seismologist Harold Tobin told KUOW that these tremors could have wide-ranging implications on a larger earthquake in the near future.
“There could be a heightened chance that that would be adding stress to the part of the plate we actually worry about, which is the ‘locked zone’ or the seismogenic zone, for the big earthquake,” said Tobin, qualifying that by pointing out “the jury is very much out” on that theory.
Back in July, a pair of earthquakes struck in Snohomish County, the first hitting 4.3 in magnitude, and the second checking in at 3.5.
