Earthquake Hits Hopkinton: Report

HOPKINTON, NH — No, if you live in the Concord area, you were not imagining a rumble this morning. A small earthquake occurred just outside of the city, according to reports online. The Weston Observatory at Boston College recorded at 2.3 magnitude quake in Hopkinton at just after 5 a.m. on March 7, 2018, according to a report online.

The earthquake was about 10 kilometers in depth in the area of Dolf Brook and Broad Cove Road and was felt by a number of capital region residents, according to posts on social media.

There have been about 25 earthquakes in New Hampshire during the past year, according to trackers online.

Last month, geologists reported a 2.7 magnitude quake struck off North Road in East Kingston. The quake was registered at about 6.3 km in depth. That boom – which at least one person on Twitter suggested last as long as 10 seconds – was reported at just before 9:30 a.m. on Feb. 15, and was felt as far away as a number of Essex County communities in northeastern Massachusetts.

A 2.0 magnitude earthquake was reported in Sanborton in February.

Other earthquakes have also been reported around the state during the past few years, including in the Hopkinton area. About a year ago, a 2.2 magnitude quake was reported in Bedford. In January 2017, a 1.9 quake was reported in Laconia.

Numerous earthquakes were reported in 2016, including a 2.9 quake in Warner in March. During the past two years, earthquakes have been reported in Concord, Contoocook, Sanbornton, and Warner, as well.

A 1.5 magnitude quake was reported in Plymouth in July 2015, with 2.3 and 2.1 magnitude earthquakes reported in Sanborton and Warner in April 2015, according to reports. A 2.3 magnitude earthquake hit Boscawen in May 2015.

In October 2014, a 2.5 magnitude quake hit Contoocook just a few miles south of this morning's rumbling. A year before that, a 1.7 quake hit East Side Drive in Concord.

Late last year, researchers in New Jersey reported finding a mass of warm rock beneath northern New England, including New Hampshire and Vermont. The data gathered by geophysicists suggest that a major volcanic eruption is expected in the region – millions of years from now.

Screenshot via Weston Observatory.