2024 East Coast Earthquake

According to multiple sources including CNN and NBC a large earthquake struck the East Coast of the United States on April 5th 2024 at around 1030AM – East Coast Time. The initial readings show it to have been a 4.6 magnitude shaker located in Lebanon New Jersey. This location is around 100 miles from New York City. A 4.6 shaker is considered strong but not that significant. Had it occured in Washington or California it likely would not have been headline news.

It is the locaiton that is unusual. Although somewhat unusual – there are lots of historical cases of earthquakes hitting areas that are not commonly expected to see seismic activity. This includes the New Madrid Fault Area and even Florida. Quakes can happen throughout planet earth,

According to Live Science “98 percent of earthquakes occur at the boundaries of tectonic plates.” Therefore its understanable why it might feel odd that an earthquake happens near NYC.

Earthquakes might be rare – but they DO hit the east coast. PBS states “Since 1950 there have been about 20 quakes with a magnitude above 4.5, according to the United States Geological.” Source. “There’s a history of similar-sized earthquakes in the New York region over the last few hundred years,” said Jessica Thompson Jobe from the USGS’ Earthquake Hazards Program. Oddly enough – “In 2011, a 5.8 magnitude earthquake [in] Virginia, shook East Coast residents over a wide swath from Georgia to Maine and even…Canada. The USGS called it one of the most widely felt quakes in North American history.”

According to NBC News “There were no immediate reports of major destruction or any fatalities. Local and regional officials from cities in the earthquake zone said inspections had been launched to ensure that buildings, bridges and other infrastructure were not damaged.”

Additionally “New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in an afternoon news briefing that no major injuries or impacts to infrastructure were reported, and that people in the city should “go about their normal day.”

This blog spends a significant amount of time discussing earthquake science and situations in California, for obvious reasons with Articles about The Big Crack, and the God of Earthquake, and the Eastern California Shear Zone. Sometimes its all too easy to foget that quakes happen nationwide [and worldwide.]