Peninsula Daily News and news services
FRIDAY HARBOR — A small earthquake in the San Juan Islands rattled the North Olympic Peninsula, Victoria and parts of Northwest Washington at 8:36 a.m. Tuesday.
The quake — measuring a modest 3.2 in magnitude — was centered beneath San Juan Island about five miles west-northwest of the island’s town of Friday Harbor at a depth of 31.6 miles, according to the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network at the University of Washington in Seattle.
No damage or injuries were reported.
In Port Angeles and Victoria, residents said the quake felt like a strong side-to-side jolt and only lasted for a second or two. “A quick bounce, like something falling over,” said one Port Angeles homeowner who called the Peninsula Daily News.
Keith Ross felt the quake at his office next to Ebey’s Prairie in Coupeville on Whidbey Island.
“I knew right away it was an earthquake,” Ross said. “It was just a short 2-, 3-second rolling. About three rolls, and it was done.”
The tremor’s epicenter was 14 miles northeast of Victoria.
“I’ve lived in Victoria for four years and never felt [an earthquake] until this morning,” said Kelly Young in a Twitter.com posting. “I feel like a true BCer now!”
Oregon quake
A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck off the Oregon coast at 2:02 p.m. Tuesday but was far enough away that it was unlikely anyone on land felt it.
The epicenter was located along the Juan de Fuca plate fault line about 145 miles west of Coos Bay, which is about 350 miles south of Port Angeles.
The location is an active quake region. A similar quake measuring 4.7 hit near the same location just hours earlier Tuesday.
