A very shallow magnitude 2.9 earthquake was reported early afternoon near Annonay, Ardèche, Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, France.According to France's Réseau National de Surveillance Sismique (RéNaSS), the quake hit on Monday, March 23rd, 2026, at 3:18 pm local time at a very shallow depth of 5. km. Shallow earthquakes are felt more strongly than deeper ones as they are closer to the surface. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their report.Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should not have caused any significant damage, but was probably felt by many people as light vibration in the area of the epicenter. Weak shaking might have been felt in Satillieu (pop. 1,600) located 2 km from the epicenter.Other towns or cities near the epicenter where the quake might have been felt as very weak shaking include Annonay (pop. 18,400) located 13 km from the epicenter. In Bourg-les-Valence (pop. 19,800, 32 km away), Valence (pop. 63,900, 34 km away), Saint-Etienne (pop. 176,300, 37 km away), Firminy (pop. 17,900, 37 km away), Saint-Chamond (pop. 38,000, 38 km away), Romans-sur-Isere (pop. 35,000, 39 km away), and Lyon (pop. 523,000, 71 km away), the quake was probably not felt.Earthquake data: Date & time: Mar 23, 2026 03:18 pm (GMT +1) local time (23 Mar 2026 14:18 GMT)Magnitude: 2.9Depth: 5.00 kmEpicenter latitude / longitude: 45.14°N / 4.59°E (Ardèche, Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, France)Primary data source: RENASS