Thursday morning’s 3.8-magnitude earthquake in Indiana triggered over 7,100 responses to the U.S. Geological Survey by the afternoon, from people saying that they felt the earthquake at some point.
The earthquake, which Indiana University geologist Michael Hamburger described as “pretty unusual for the area” to local television station WTHR, occurred about 3 miles deep and was centered about 50 miles north-northeast of the Indiana capital, Indianapolis.
As of 4 p.m. Thursday, over 7,100 people told the USGS that they had felt the earthquake, including residents as far away as New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Kentucky, and Wisconsin, although most calls came from Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois.
Aside from reporting to USGS, many also called Howard County 911. Within 15 minutes after the earthquake, the Howard County Sheriff Department Dispatch Center received 113 calls reporting the event.
“I live in Greentown and something just felt like it exploded and our whole house,” one caller told the dispatch center as quoted by WISH-TV. Greentown is five miles south of the epicenter.
Although many felt the earthquake, the USGS said and earthquakes of such magnitude east of the Rocky Mountains “seldom leads to damage near its source.”
As for some, the earthquake was merely a shake that posed no further threat.
“I woke up to an earthquake today. At first I was freaking out that my bed was shaking. ... Then I assumed it was a dream and went back to sleep,” tweeted @LMoe10, a resident of Indiana according to her Twitter profile.
Historically, Indiana is not prone to earthquakes. Significant earthquakes documented by the USGS include the 5.1-magnitude earthquake in Wabash River Valley in 1909 and the 4.6-magnitude in Darmstadt in 2002.
The earthquake, which Indiana University geologist Michael Hamburger described as “pretty unusual for the area” to local television station WTHR, occurred about 3 miles deep and was centered about 50 miles north-northeast of the Indiana capital, Indianapolis.
As of 4 p.m. Thursday, over 7,100 people told the USGS that they had felt the earthquake, including residents as far away as New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Kentucky, and Wisconsin, although most calls came from Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois.
Aside from reporting to USGS, many also called Howard County 911. Within 15 minutes after the earthquake, the Howard County Sheriff Department Dispatch Center received 113 calls reporting the event.
“I live in Greentown and something just felt like it exploded and our whole house,” one caller told the dispatch center as quoted by WISH-TV. Greentown is five miles south of the epicenter.
Although many felt the earthquake, the USGS said and earthquakes of such magnitude east of the Rocky Mountains “seldom leads to damage near its source.”
As for some, the earthquake was merely a shake that posed no further threat.
“I woke up to an earthquake today. At first I was freaking out that my bed was shaking. ... Then I assumed it was a dream and went back to sleep,” tweeted @LMoe10, a resident of Indiana according to her Twitter profile.
Historically, Indiana is not prone to earthquakes. Significant earthquakes documented by the USGS include the 5.1-magnitude earthquake in Wabash River Valley in 1909 and the 4.6-magnitude in Darmstadt in 2002.
