On Saturday Evening a Shallow M4.5 FORESHOCK struck near Brawley in The United States.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on May 10th, 2026.

Under land 1 miles from Brawley in The United States, a shallow M4.5 foreshock occurred in the evening of Saturday May 9th, 2026. Roughly 5.6 million people may have felt this earthquake. Mexico is also near its epicenter.

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Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in The United States, 1 miles (2 km) northwest of Brawley in California. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 10 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	May 9, 2026 08:39PM (Los Angeles Time) - May 10, 2026 03:39 Universal Time.
Location:	1 mi NW of Brawley, California, The United States. Coordinates 32°59'25"N 115°33'7"W.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 4.5 Detected by 21 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.2 .
Depth:	10 mi (16 km) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	V Moderate On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Tsunami very unlikely While this was a shallow earthquake, it appears to have occurred under land with a magnitude not strong enough to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Minimal impact predicted

Based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level GREEN (low). They expect an 90% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 90% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact.

Roughly 5.6 million people exposed to shaking

This earthquake may have been felt by around 5.6 million people. That is the expected population size of the area exposed to a level of shaking of II or higher on the Modified Mercalli scale according to the USGS.

An estimated 27,170 people were exposed to level V. At this level, moderate shaking and very light damage can be expected. Intensity level I was experienced by the majority of people (around 6.9 million). In their region, not noticeable and no damage can be expected. All exposure to shaking was within the borders of Mexico .

Nearby towns and cities

The United States and Mexico are both located within 300km distance of the epicenter of the earthquake.

Brawley in California, The United States is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 1 miles (2 km) northwest of Brawley. The intensity of shaking and damage in Brawley is estimated to be around level V on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (moderate shaking, very light damage).

Multiple large cities are in proximity of today's earthquake. Mexicali is located 41 km to the south and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Los Angeles is located 171 mi to the northwest (intensity unknown, possibly low). San Diego is located 96 mi to the west and experienced an intensity of II (very weak shaking, no damage).

A complete list of nearby places is included below. Estimated intensity data (MMI) sourced from a shake-map published by the US Geographic Survey is shown where available (cities without data probably experienced little impact).

Overview of nearby places

Earthquake Intensity Map

The maximum intensity (MMI Scale) caused by this earthquake is V. The map below shows in which areas this earthquake was the most and least impactful. It is based on data from the US Geographic Survey.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Shaking reported by 15 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 15 people have reported shaking in 3 places, all within Mexico.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

• Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico: 10 people.
• Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico: 4 people.
• La Joya, Baja California, Mexico: 1 person.

This is likely a foreshock

This earthquake was followed by a stronger MAG-4.7 earthquake, classifying this earthquake as a foreshock.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

More earthquakes coming?

Aftershocks are usually at least 1 order of magnitude less strong than main shocks. The more time passes, the smaller the chance and likely strength of any potential aftershocks.

It's always adviced to be cautious of the risk of a larger shock following any significant earthquake, however this risk is fairly small. There is a roughly 94 percent change that no larger main shock will follow in the days following this earthquake.

Earthquakes like this happen often in the region

Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since January 20th, 2026, when a 4.9 magnitude earthquake hit 72 mi (116 km) further northwest. An even stronger magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck on November 22nd, 2022.

In total, 39 earthquakes with a magnitude of 4.5 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every 3 months.

Tsunami very unlikely

While MAG-6.5+ earthquakes may cause tsunami's, it appears that the epicenter of this earthquake hit under land. In addition, the reported depth is deeper than 100km, making the risk of a tsunami even less likely. However always stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Sources

Last updated 10/05/26 09:18 (). As more information on this earthquake becomes available this article will be updated. This article is automatically composed based on data originating from multiple sources.

1. US Geographic Society (USGS): Earthquake ci41460512
2. European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC): Earthquake 20260510_0000065
3. Geonames.org: World Cities Database
4. Google Maps: Static API
5. Earthquakelist.org: Historic Earthquakes Database

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