**Mosteiros, Portugal —** A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck the Azores on Tuesday afternoon, shaking the waters just west of São Miguel Island. The U.S. Geological Survey says the quake hit at 1:07 PM Central Time (18:07 UTC), centered about 24 miles west of the village of Mosteiros.

**What happened:**

The USGS placed the quake 39 kilometers west of Mosteiros, Portugal, at a shallow depth of about 10 kilometers. The agency has reviewed the location and magnitude and lists the quake as a reviewed event. Shallow quakes like this one are typically felt more strongly at the surface than deeper ones of the same size.

**Impacts:**

The USGS did not issue a tsunami alert for this quake. Felt reports from the islands had not been summarized as of this writing; islanders on São Miguel's west end were in the closest populated area. No damage reports were available from the USGS in the first hour after the quake.

**What to do:**

- If you feel shaking: drop, cover, and hold on. Get under a sturdy table and stay away from windows.

- Check your home for hazards after the shaking stops — gas lines, broken glass, and toppled items.

- Expect aftershocks. Smaller shakes often follow a quake of this size in the hours and days ahead.

- If you are on the coast and the shaking was long or strong, move to higher ground as a precaution.

*Source: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), October 20, 2026.*