KEY PENINSULA, Wash. — A magnitude 4.2 earthquake centered on the Kitsap Peninsula shook parts of western Washington on Tuesday afternoon, briefly disrupting activity at the Angle Lake light rail station and prompting an evacuation of SeaTac City Hall.
The earthquake was felt across a broad area, with reports coming from Olympia, SeaTac and other communities around Puget Sound.
“It was very brief,” said a neighbor named Solveig, who felt the shaking in Olympia at while reading at her home. “About two or three seconds,’ she continued.
“We want to make sure that all of our employees are accounted for and that we are safe,” said Krista Carlson with the City of SeaTac. “It kind of felt like a shudder,” she continued.
Harold Tobin, director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, said the earthquake was one of the bigger earthquakes the region has seen since March of 2025.
“This is one of the bigger earthquakes since then and obviously that’s felt by a lot of people,” Tobin said.
Despite being widely felt, the earthquake did not trigger a wireless emergency alert.
“It was also determined that it didn’t meet the threshold for sending everyone a cell phone alert,” Tobin said.
The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network at the University of Washington quickly identified the earthquake’s location and began tracking reports from residents. Tobin said the agency had not received reports of injuries or significant damage.
Tobin also said there is no indication that Tuesday’s earthquake signals a larger event to come.
“The most likely scenario is that this 4.2 is a 4.2,” Tobin said. “We just get them occasionally, and it’s not a sign that we are building up to something bigger except in the sense that our region is earthquake country and we have to remember that we have the risk of earthquakes here.”
Officials and earthquake experts said the quake reminds residents to review emergency plans and prepare for future earthquakes.
“The first thing is drop, cover and hold on,” Tobin said. “Move away from anything obvious that can fall on you.”
Carlson said the experience also provides an opportunity for governments and organizations to evaluate emergency procedures.
“We lay the groundwork and make the best plans we can,” Carlson said. “Every time we have an experience like this, it’s a chance for us to stop and look at the processes that we used and see if there is anything we need to refine or do differently.”