3 of Casper’s Largest Quakes Included a 4.2 Shaker 25 Years Ago
We don't get earthquakes near Casper very often or at least the kind that you can really feel. I decided to do some digging and learned about some of the strongest quakes that have been felt in Casper and that includes 3 measurable ones in the last nearly 40 years.
Last month, the Casper area felt a 3.9 that was centered near Worland, Wyoming. Several dozen people officially reported to the USGS that they felt it that morning. That's strong by Casper standards, but not the strongest in recent history.
I found some interesting Casper earthquake history on HomeFacts. According to their data, here are the 3 strongest quakes in the past 40 years in our part of Wyoming:
2/1/2003 - 3.7 magnitude quake
11/5/1983 - 3.0 magnitude quake
10/19/1996 - 4.2 magnitude quake
That 4.2 in 1996 struck at 1:27 pm the afternoon of October 19, 1996. Based on Wikipedia's Richter Scale explanation, a quake of this strength is capable of minor to moderate damage depending on how close the epicenter is to buildings and property.
What's the likelihood that we'll someday see a larger quake near Casper than the ones listed? Not very is the short answer, but HomeFacts does give Casper a 3.4% probability of seeing an earthquake stronger than 5.0 in the next 50 years. So, you're saying there's a chance.
Not many expected the 3.9 that we saw last month, so you never know when our part of Wyoming will decide to rock and roll again.