Earthquake cluster shakes off the Oregon coast — including two 5.9-magnitude quakes

A cluster of earthquakes shook off the Oregon coast Friday morning included two 5.9- magnitude quakes, geologists said.

At least five earthquakes were reported between 88 and 100 miles from Gold Beach, Oregon, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The largest were two 5.9-magnitude earthquakes. The first one struck at 12:52 a.m. Pacific Time, and a second 5.9-magnitude quake began at 1:17 a.m.

The smallest earthquake was a 3.2-magnitude shaker at 2:20 a.m., according to USGS.

The National Weather Service said there is no tsunami risk expected from the 5.9-magnitude earthquakes.

Few people have reported feeling the earthquakes because they were far off the coast. Only about a dozen people have reported feeling the quakes to USGS.

Still, people on social media were surprised to see two large earthquakes back-to-back off the coast and wondered if it’s an indication for an even bigger earthquake to come.

A similar earthquake cluster occurred at the end of April when seven quakes with magnitudes between 3.8 and 5.4 struck off the Oregon coast.

Magnitude measures the energy released at the source of the earthquake, the U.S. Geological Survey says. It replaced the old Richter scale.

Quakes between 2.5 and 5.4 magnitude are often felt but rarely cause much damage, according to Michigan Tech.

This story was originally published June 4, 2021 at 10:17 AM with the headline "Earthquake cluster shakes off the Oregon coast — including two 5.9-magnitude quakes."