Boom over the Tri-Cities - Jun 21, 2026, 9:00 PM
Sunday, June 21, 2026 at 8:55 PM · 3 months ago
The red marker is our best guess at the source; the blue dots are where people were. Estimated from how strong it felt across the area - loudest closest to the source. There aren't enough direction arrows yet, so this leans on the loudness pattern alone. A few people reporting which way it came from would sharpen it a lot.
Collecting reports
Reports are still coming in. We compare every boom against seismic records, 911 dispatch activity, weather and known local sources. If we can pin down what it was, this is where it will appear.
More reports make this far more likely, especially from different directions.
What it lines up with
Automatic cross-references. Suggestive, not proof.
Stevens Drive Substation (substation) - about 1.3 km from the estimated origin.
A USGS M1.7 earthquake 43 km away, 41h apart.
Conditions weren’t especially sound-carrying. (25°C, wind 4 km/h, 0% cloud)
evening on a weekend.
First quarter (45% lit).
Transformer and substation faults set off both a boom and an outage. See who else nearby is out, and when it is coming back.
isthepowerout.comWhat people reported
Each number matches a dot on the map above.
Hollow sounding explosion, almost felt like it came from under the apartment.
Heard a big boom & saw firework lights from blast. It was an ariel mortar, visually saw it.
What do you think it was?
Cast your vote. The data’s nearest match: substation - Stevens Drive Substation.
Discussion
Saw the same thing? Have a theory or evidence about what it was? Weigh in.