4.1-magnitude quake rattles parts of region, and some feel it here
AUGUSTA, Ga. - Some Georgia residents were startled Saturday morning as an earthquake from Tennessee shook several nearby states.
The quake’s epicenter was near Greenback, about 30 miles southwest of Knoxville. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, it happened at 9:04 a.m. and had an estimated magnitude of 4.1.
According to the Augusta Fire Department and Emergency Management Agency, a few people could feel it in Augusta.
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One resident of Fort Eisenhower wrote on Facebook: “It was very minor, just some bookshelves tapping against the wall, so it would’ve been missed if we hadn’t have been just waking up.”
Another Augusta resident reported her bathroom door rattled.
But people across metro Atlanta and as far south as Macon said the quake shook their homes. Tremors were also felt near Charlotte.
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U.S. Geological Survey research geophysicist William Yeck said the quake happened in the Eastern Tennessee Seismic Zone, which is made up of several small, deep fault lines. This earthquake’s epicenter was about 12 miles below the surface.
“We do expect for earthquakes to happen here, so we know they can happen, but they just happen so rarely that people just aren’t used to experiencing them,” he said.
More than 40,000 people called the Geological Survey to report the earthquake.
Gabriela Reilly was making waffles with her husband when they felt their entire home shake in Braselton, Ga., northeast of Atlanta.
“Our ceiling fan started shaking for about 10 seconds,” she said. “I thought a giant aircraft had flown low right over the neighborhood, but my husband said, ‘No, that was definitely an earthquake!’”
Jason Pack was still in bed at his home outside Knoxville when he felt the walls shaking and heard a rumbling that was loud enough to wake up his family and for the dog to start barking.
“In east Tennessee, you’re used to tornadoes and floods, that kind of thing,” Pack said. “It’s unusual to have an earthquake.”
Pack has experienced tremors before, although this one is probably the strongest he’s felt in Tennessee.
“Even though this one was small, it’s a good reminder — if it had been a big quake, would you know what to do? Drop, cover, and hold on if you’re inside,” said Pack, a retired FBI agent who now works in crisis communications. “Stay clear of buildings if you’re outside.”
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Yeck said earthquakes in the eastern U.S. tend to travel farther than those to our west because the rock is older and denser, acting as a better carrier for seismic waves.
Damage does not usually occur from earthquakes until they reach a magnitude of somewhere above 4 or 5, according to experts, although it depends on variables such as building construction, soil and distance from the epicenter.
Since 1950, 15 other earthquakes of magnitude 4 or larger have occurred within 155 miles of Saturday’s earthquake. The largest of those was a magnitude 4.7 earthquake near Knoxville in November 1973.
Experts say there’s a 5% chance of an aftershock with a magnitude of 4 or larger in the next week.
Earthquakes aren’t necessarily uncommon across Georgia, or even in the CSRA.
On April 7, three earthquakes were felt in Columbia County:
- One 9.1 miles northwest of Evans at 8:01 p.m. at a depth of 10 kilometers with a magnitude of 1.8.
- One 6.8 miles north of Harlem at 8:26 p.m. with a magnitude of 1.9 and a depth of one kilometer.
- One 9.6 miles northwest of Grovetown at 11:03 p.m. with a magnitude of 1.7 and a depth of 2 kilometers.
Those came nearly a week after two earthquakes were recorded near Grovetown.
Near the epicenter of Saturday’s earthquake, Blount County Emergency Management Agency Director Lance Coleman said there were no reports of injuries or damage, but officials did get a lot of phone calls.
A Tennessee Valley Authority representative said only one dam, Fontana Dam, saw enough movement to require inspection, and no issues were found.
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park said a portion of Foothills Parkway West was shut down and would remain closed until it is inspected by the Federal Highway istration.
The Tennessee Department of Transportation’s Mark Nagi said there were no reports of damaged roads, but officials would be inspecting bridges throughout the next few weeks as a precaution.
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