Minor earthquake hits south Snohomish County

Published 11:35 am Tuesday, February 24, 2026

EVERETT — Residents in south Snohomish County were hit with a minor earthquake early Tuesday morning, geological data shows.

The magnitude 3.0 earthquake struck at 5:42 a.m. Tuesday in the Cathcart area of unincorporated Snohomish County, according to data from the United States Geological Survey and the University of Washington.

A magnitude 3.0 quake is just about the threshold at which people can feel an earthquake, researchers say. Damage from earthquakes would typically only occur somewhere above magnitudes 4 or 5.

Saturday marks the 25th anniversary of the 2001 Nisqually earthquake, which measured a magnitude of 6.8 and caused at least $2 billion in damage across the Puget Sound region.

Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.