Magnitude 3.7 earthquake strikes Ontario: 'I literally just felt my house shake. Twice'
A minor earthquake with a magnitude of 3.7 was felt in parts of Ontario last night.
Earthquakes Canada confirmed the seismic activity took place before 11 p.m. on Tuesday. The earthquake is set to have hit Ramara, located east of Orillia. Although varying in intensity, the tremors were reportedly felt in Toronto, Hamilton, Belleville, Kingston and Ottawa and are said to have impacted 2,300 residents, The Weather Network reports.
The earthquake was “lightly felt” and as result there were no reports of damage and “none would be expected,” according to Earthquakes Canada.
Sure as hell felt that shaking the whole damn house! #canada #Ontario #earthquake pic.twitter.com/6PZj6C8a9d
— Leo (@HarmonyPositive) January 28, 2026
Ontario Storm Watch, an independent, community-driven weather organization on Facebook said that the “strongest shaking was clearly felt across Simcoe County, Muskoka, Kawartha Lakes, Durham and Peterborough.”
“Reports even came in from as far away as Buffalo and Rochester,” in New York, the post said.
In the comments of the Facebook post, Lisa Lloyd commented that she lives near the Peterborough airport. When she heard and felt the earthquake, she said she “looked out the window for a jet thinking there must be a big one taking off.”
Gailyn Scott also commented, saying that she was in Orillia when she felt the earthquake. “But I honestly thought it was just the plow finally coming through our neighbourhood,” she wrote.
Many others also took to social media to share their disbelief.
“I thought it was a snow plow…” posted Trupti Patel on X referencing the snowstorm that hit parts of Ontario over the weekend, with downtown Toronto receiving nearly 60 centimetres of snow.
“After suffering a record snow storm, Ontario suffers from an earthquake within a week,” posted Dr. Q on X . “Come to Canada for the peace and stability. Got snow, earthquakes, and potholes that could swallow your car whole. Who felt the earthquake in Toronto?” wrote Tammy AbiKhalil on X.
Beaverton-based artist Sarah Cowley tells The Canadian Press that a “roaring sound” came crashing through her home the moment the quake struck.
Despite living in a 120 years old sturdy house, “all the floors were shaking.” Cowley said although she woke up, her husband slept soundly through the events.
Sarah Bartok on X reported experiencing something similar. “I literally just felt my house shake. Twice. Quickly.” Leo on X also posted: “Sure as hell felt that shaking the whole damn house!”
I literally just felt my house shake. Twice. Quickly. Was that an #earthquake ? #Toronto @weathernetwork @environmentca
— Sarah Bartok (@SarahBartok) January 28, 2026
The United States Geological Survey (USGS), which monitors the Earth’s changing systems, including earthquakes, reported the earthquake at a 4.1 magnitude.
“While each earthquake releases a unique amount of energy, the magnitude values reported by different seismological observatories for an event may vary,” according to Earthquakes Canada. “Depending on the size, nature, and location of an earthquake, seismologists may use several different methods and even different magnitude scales to estimate magnitude.”
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