ATLANTA – A 4.1 magnitude earthquake in Tennessee woke up families and rattled homes far to Atlanta to spread trembling across parts of South America on Saturday morning. No injuries or major damages were reported immediately.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) website said the earthquake occurred about 12 miles from 9am, about 12 miles from Greenback, Tennessee, about 30 miles south of Knoxville.
USGS spokesperson Ayesha Davis emailed the USGS that the USGS had received over 23,000 reports from the public one hour after the earthquake. Meteorologists at the TV news station, which serve Georgia and North Carolina, also reported feeling shaking.
According to the USGS, there is an over 5% chance of aftershocks below magnitude 4 next week.
Gabriela Riley was making waffles with her husband when she felt the whole house shaking in Brazelton, Georgia, northeast of Atlanta.
“Our ceiling fans started shaking for about 10 seconds,” she said. “I thought a giant aircraft flew right through the neighborhood, but my husband said, “No, it’s definitely an earthquake!” ”
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Jason Pack was still in his bed at his home outside Knoxville, feeling the walls shaking, awakening the family and loud enough to allow the dog to start barking.
“In eastern Tennessee, you’re used to tornadoes and flooding, that’s what it is,” Pack said. “It’s rare for an earthquake to occur.”
Puck had previously experienced trembling, which is probably the strongest thing he felt in Tennessee.
“Even if this is small, it’s a good reminder. If it’s a big earthquake, do you know what to do? If you’re inside, I’ll drop, cover, and hold it.” “If you’re outside, avoid buildings.”
According to the USGS, damage usually does not occur from an earthquake until it reaches a location greater than 4 or 5, but depends on variables such as building construction, soil and distance from the epicenter.
The southeastern United States poses significant seismic risk, particularly around the new Madrid earthquake zone to the west and the East Tennessee earthquake zone where Saturday’s earthquake occurred, Davis said.
Since 1950, more than four other 15 earthquakes have occurred within 155 miles of Saturday’s earthquake, Davis said. The largest of them was the magnitude 4.7 earthquake near Knoxville in November 1973.
Recently, two tremors struck the earthquake zone in December 2018. One was a 4.4 magnitude earthquake concentrated in Decatur, Tennessee, south of Knoxville. He shook the house far to Atlanta.
A few days later, another earthquake struck a size of 3.0. Its epicenter was about two miles southeast of the mascot near Knoxville. It was also felt in parts of Georgia, Kentucky and North Carolina.
Earthquake waves from earthquakes spread more efficiently in the eastern US compared to the western part of the region, Davis said, due to the geology of the region.
“Eastern earthquakes are felt over much longer distances and are felt by more people,” she said.
By Ben Finley and Bill Cormier
