USGS “Did You Feel It?” (DYFI) is an online system where people report what they felt during an earthquake so scientists can quickly map shaking intensity and potential damage across a region.

What “Did You Feel It?” Is

  • DYFI is a community internet intensity reporting tool run by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
  • It turns thousands of public reports into maps showing how strongly the ground shook and where shaking was felt.

How It Works

  • After an earthquake, you go to the DYFI web form, enter your location, answer simple questions (did objects sway, did things fall, did you evacuate, etc.), and submit.
  • The system converts your answers into a macroseismic intensity value (not magnitude) and combines many reports to create a high‑resolution shaking map within minutes.

Why Your Report Matters

  • Public DYFI reports help refine USGS ShakeMap products used by emergency managers to see where shaking was strongest and decide where to send help first.
  • DYFI gives far denser coverage than seismic instruments alone, especially in places with few sensors, and has been used for over two decades in the U.S. and globally.

Key Features of DYFI

  • Captures internet‑based felt reports at very high rates just after quakes, allowing rapid mapping of intensity.
  • Enables citizen science: anyone who felt shaking can contribute scientifically useful data that may improve hazard models and future risk estimates.

Forum / Trending Angle

  • On forums and social platforms, “USGS Did You Feel It” is often shared right after a quake so people can compare experiences and check if others nearby felt the same shaking.
  • Some users note that DYFI became a routine tool after large events (for example, major quakes in Japan, Chile, and Oklahoma), turning casual “did you feel that?” posts into structured, mappable data.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.