A magnitude 5.9 earthquake rocked rural Virginia on Tuesday, with reports of movement recorded along the United States’ entire east coast, shaking major metropolitan areas such Washington, D.C. and New York City. No fatalities were immediately reported.
The earthquake, which, according to the United States Geological Survey, is the strongest that has occurred on the east coast in 67 years, is giving geological experts something to think about.
“It’s not in a place where you’d expect such an earthquake,” said Andrew Goodliffe, associate professor of geology at the University of Alabama. “It’s going to take geologists a while to work out, to be perfectly honest.”
The nation’s strongest and most notorious earthquakes generally occur on modern plate boundaries, like along the San Andres Fault that has plagued the west coast with tremors and major earthquakes for centuries. However, Goodliffe said the earthquake’s epicenter in Virginia does not rest on or near a modern plate boundary.
“Rather, you find an ancient plate boundary, where 200-300 million years ago, there was major plate collision,” Goodliffe said. “Much like a very old house, this was just a very old fault that creaked a bit.”
Susan L. Good, a guidance counselor at Hermitage High School in Henrico County, Va., roughly 40 miles from the epicenter of the earthquake, said the earthquake panicked her high school, but no one was hurt.
“I was talking in the lobby of my office with a co-worker when we heard a loud rumbling noise and the building began to shake,” Good said. “Within moments, we all decided it was an earthquake.”
“As we moved to the back of the building, the walls shook, items fell off shelves and the floor under our feet was moving. My feet were moving, and I was just standing still. There was panic on the faces of everyone as we all looked at each other with amazement.”
Without injuries or fatalities, Good said that the community was left with some inconvenience and a great deal of uncertainty about the days to come.
“There was no damage and [there were] no injuries,” Good said. “Immediately, the phones began ringing and cell phones were blocked. I, personally, am worried about an aftershock, but hoping we’re done. People are already on edge, I believe, due to the impending hurricane headed our way this weekend.”
In response to such concerns around the nation about aftershocks and additional earthquakes, UA’s Goodliffe said that, in his opinion, there was probably nothing more serious coming in the immediate future.
“I don’t think it’s a preface to anything bigger than what has already happened, in terms of aftershocks or additional quakes in the area. In this area, quakes of this magnitude are few and far between,” Goodliffe said. “Almost certainly this is a bit of a fluke, a one-time thing. Honestly, a magnitude six earthquake, a 5.9, is not a huge earthquake. Usually, and I strongly emphasize usually, you wouldn’t see any big aftershocks.”
Patrick Reilly, a junior at UA and president of UA’s Meteorological Society, is also unconcerned with aftershocks, but shares Good’s worry about hurricane season and approaching storms like Hurricane Irene.
“The earthquake was a 5.9, so it wasn’t huge, but Hurricane Irene is supposed to hit the east coast, and with the potential loosened earth, that could cause landslides. Combined with the water from the hurricane, it has potential to cause a big mess when Hurricane Irene gets here,” Reilly said. “This earthquake was just bad timing on Mother Nature’s part.”
