More than 230 small earthquakes have been reported in the past week near Reno, Nevada, according to officials.
Instruments have picked up more than 230 small quakes since last Thursday, Jan. 11, the report said.
The largest in the earthquake swarm registered as a 2.7 on the Richter scale.
“You'd have to be right above it to really feel anything,” University of Nevada, Reno seismologist Ken Smith told the Gazette, adding that the 2.7 quake is “pretty small” despite it being the largest of the bunch.
Smith said that he and others at UNR’s Nevada Seismological Laboratory pay attention to earthquake swarms, while noting that Nevada is a very seismically active state.
He said that it’s not clear if the swarm will trigger a larger earthquake.
“But if they do, we want to be on top of it,” he said. “In a way it’s kind of a heads up.”
Smith said that it’s not clear what fault is creating the earthquake swarm. Some people have noted that the quakes are located near the Ormat Steamboat Geothermal Power Plant. Geothermal plants created electricity by using hot water vents beneath the earth’s crust, and they have been linked to earthquakes.
Smith noted that people should be prepared for small earthquakes, as they can cause damage.
“Everyone is worried about the big one, but it doesn’t take the big one to knock over your water heater and empty out your shelves,” he said.
