Magnitude 4.0 quake rattles Las Animas County, felt in Pueblo, Trinidad

A shallow magnitude 4.0 earthquake rattled Las Animas County late morning Thursday, shaking homes and businesses near Weston and sending reports of swaying furniture and brief tremors from Trinidad to Pueblo. Despite the jolt, local officials and media reports said there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

The U.S. Geological Survey placed the epicenter about 17 kilometers south-southwest of Weston at 11:44:24 a.m. MDT, with a depth of 8.7 kilometers at 36.985°N, 104.930°W. The event showed up on the agency’s earthquake page as a magnitude 4.0 quake, and people quickly began submitting “Did You Feel It?” responses that helped map the shaking across southern Colorado.

One USGS-linked tally reported 37 felt responses and a maximum intensity of about MMI 4.6, a level that can be noticeable indoors and strong enough to prompt people to pause, check walls or look outside for a source of the vibration. Reports described the quake as being felt in Trinidad and Pueblo, with some accounts suggesting it may have reached as far north as the U.S. 50 corridor.

The quake stood out because several reports said it was the strongest in the area since 2023, a reminder that even moderate seismic events can draw attention in a part of Colorado where residents are more accustomed to weather shifts than shaking ground. The location near the Colorado-New Mexico border also put the tremor squarely in the line of sight for communities that rely on quick information when the earth moves.

USGS says its Did You Feel It? reports help build maps of what people experienced and where damage may have been felt, while ShakeMap products give federal, state and local agencies near-real-time estimates of ground motion and shaking intensity. In Las Animas County, that information feeds into the work of the Office of Emergency Management, the county’s hub for all-hazard preparation, prevention, response and recovery. With no immediate reports of harm, Thursday’s quake served as a short but sharp test of how quickly officials and residents can gauge and respond to a sudden seismic event.