Nevada rattled by M5.5 quake near Silver Springs as experts warn of possible bigger shocks
LYON COUNTY, Nev. — Western Nevada got jolted Monday evening when a magnitude 5.5 earthquake centered about 12 miles from Silver Springs shook the region, pulling attention to one of the state’s most active seismic areas.
Kyren Bogolub, a network seismologist with the UNR Laboratory, said the quake ranks among the biggest in Nevada in decades. “I want to say in the last 60 years or so, I think it’s about the seventh largest earthquake in Nevada,” Bogolub said.
What’s driving the concern is where the shaking sits in the big picture of fault activity. Misryoum newsroom reporting points to the Walker Lane, a highly active system of faults running for about 600 miles along the Nevada-California border. Bogolub said the Walker Lane is probably the most seismically active part of Nevada. “It’s not necessarily where we have the largest earthquakes, but it’s where we have the most,” she said.
And then there’s the part that lands with a heavier weight: the future. Bogolub added she wouldn’t be surprised to see a larger quake in the region. “I would say getting a magnitude 7 would not be shocking to me,” she said.
A little farther north, University of Nevada, Reno has been preparing for that kind of reality too. Misryoum newsroom reporting shows that about 180 medical students took part in an earthquake disaster training exercise Tuesday focused on responding after a major earthquake — including a scenario where the number of patients exceeds available space. Jennifer Delaney, UNR’s training and exercise coordinator, said the drill matters because Nevada is already in the danger zone in a broad sense. “Nevada is the third most seismically active state in the Union, following California and Alaska, so it is absolutely plausible that we could have this situation,” Delaney said.
The exercise was scheduled before Monday’s earthquake, but students said the timing made it feel immediate. “It was… very interesting timing… to have an earthquake like that happen just one day before we had a training,” UNR medical student Ozzie Tavares said. “I think it made us all take it a lot more seriously… Nevada is always at risk for something like this to happen.”
One small detail stuck with the moment for people who were nearby—like how, after the shaking, you could hear the quick rush of conversation outside, the kind that usually comes right after you realize the ground actually moved. And even though the drill and the quake are separate events, they now sit in the same mental folder: prepare, take it seriously, and maybe… just maybe, don’t wait for the next warning before you’re ready.
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