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US Earthquakes - Not Just In California!

Mention earthquakes in the US and most people think of the San Andreas Fault that runs from LA to San Francisco.

But that's not the only active earthquake area in the USA.

Have you ever heard of the New Madrid Seismic Zone? A series of four major earthquakes occurred near New Madrid, Missouri from December 16, 1811 through February 7, 1812.

The smallest of the three tremblers was a respectable 7.2. The most violent registered an 8.0 and was felt from the East Coast to the Rocky Mountains and from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. It destroyed the town of New Madrid and many buildings in St. Louis. There were also 203 aftershocks recorded. If you look at the map to the right you'll see the red box surrounded by many smaller indicators of milder earthquake activity in the area. The Mississippi Valley took quite a hit. Scientists warn that another major earthquake could happen at any time.

While residents of New York City may not worry about earthquakes, they do happen. The last major earthquake in the Big Apple was in 1884. The center of the 5.2 event was just off the shore near Far Rockaway in Queens. The ground moved enough to knock chimneys from rooftops and the tremors were felt from Virginia to Maine. The 125th Street Fault often sends minor shockwaves through the area and even midtown Manhattan residents get shaken up by seismic activity on a regular basis - although most New Yorkers probably think the shaking is a subway rattling by.

Another hot spot for earthquake activity is near Charleston, South Carolina. On September 1, 1886 the area was the site of one of the largest and most destructive historic shocks in Eastern North America. The killer quake claimed 60 lives and many of the buildings in the city of Charleston were damaged or destroyed. Reports of structural damge came in from areas in central Alabama, central Ohio, eastern Kentucky, southern Virginia, and western West Virginia. Much smaller earthquakes have continued to hit the area every ten to twenty years. A magnitude 3.5 quake was reported in 1995 followed by a 4.2 tremor in 2002 centered in Seabrook Island - about 30 miles away from Charleston. The area still records low level seismic activity and scientists are not sure whether this is a sign that another major event could hit this portion of the Southeast.

No state is immune from the effects of an earthquake. In 1931, near Valentine Texas, an earthquake measuring 5.8 damaged the area. In 1916 Irondale, Alabama was rocked by a magnitude 5.1 quake. In 1959 Arizona recorded a 5.6 level event. Northeast Kentucky felt a 5.1 shock in 1980. Southeast Maine rocked to a 5.1 magnitude quake in 1904 and in 2003 a 3.6 quake hit the Gulf of Maine.

The Mississippi Valley -"Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On"

Small M2.6 earthquake jolts downtown New York

Are you prepared for the next Big One?

Latest Earthquakes in the USA - Past 7 days

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