4.1 Magnitude Earthquake Felt In Virginia, DC

DOVER, DE — An earthquake hit Delaware Thursday evening, and Virginians say they felt it. The quake occurred at 4:47 p.m. about 6 miles northeast of Dover, Delaware, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

People from Baltimore to Washington, D.C., and Fairfax County reported that they felt the quake, using the USGS tool that crowdsources information about earthquake events. Even residents in Connecticut and Rhode Island reported the temblor.

The initial report was for a 4.4-magnitude quake but the USGS has since scaled it back.

Reddit users in the DC area shared locations, with some in Washington and Bethesda saying they didn't feel the quake. Others, including a former Californian at 15th and L on the 12th floor of a building, saying they knew a quake had happened. More reports of residents who felt the shake came from Capitol Hill, Farragut Square, and Baltimore.

Did you feel the earthquake? Tell us in the comments!

Twitter had fun with the Earth's upheaval. One wag wrote it was the country's forefathers rolling over. Another said, "Was Actually Just Trump Pulling The DC Sewer Plug..."

The AltEPA Twitter handle said, "When DC is a rockin, don’t come a knockin."

And writer Michael James Welch‏ had this tongue-in-cheek note with a photo of a tipped-over lawn chair: "My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone in the MD, PA, DE areas affected by this 4.4 #earthquake. This is devastating to hear and I hope you'll be able to recover."

Past Virginia Quakes

Earthquakes happen when there is movement below the Earth's surface on fault lines. They can occur anywhere in the U.S. and usually last less than a minute, according to FEMA.

A 2.4 magnitude earthquake rattled parts of Virginia on Aug. 25, 2017, according to the USGS. The temblor was registered with the epicenter located 6 kilometers from Goochland, Virginia, near Richmond, experts say.

On March 12, 2017, a 2.3 magnitude quake was registered with the epicenter located 6 kilometers from Goochland, Virginia, near Richmond. The USGS reports that people in Rockville, Maryland, felt the quake. And on Dec. 22, 2016, a 2.2 magnitude earthquake was registered with the epicenter located 18 kilometers from Ashland, Virginia. A 2.3 quake centered nine miles south of Louisa, Va. and 27 miles northwest of Short Pump, Virginia, was reported about 18 months ago.

Since at least 1774, people in central Virginia have felt small earthquakes and suffered damage from infrequent larger ones, the USGS noted. The largest damaging earthquake (magnitude 5.8) in the seismic zone occurred in 2011. Smaller earthquakes that cause little or no damage are felt each year or two.

The 5.8-magnitude quake felt by Northern Virginia hit August 23, 2011, when, as the USGS notes: "Tens of millions of people all over the East Coast and southeastern Canada suddenly felt the earth shaking from the largest earthquake in that area since the M5.8 earthquake in 1944 near Cornwall and Massena, New York. When the earth stopped shaking, more than 148,000 people reported their experience of the earthquake on the Did You Feel It? Web site representing an area occupied by one-third of the U.S. population."

That quake did millions of dollars in damage, including to the National Cathedral, the Armed Forces Retirement Home, and the Washington Monument in Washington D.C., as well as minor to major damage to almost 600 residential properties.

The 5.8 earthquake was centered near the town of Mineral, Va., about 65 km northwest of Richmond at a depth of about 6-8 km.

Photo Credit: Shutterstock