Midwest Earthquake

isuhawkeye · April 18, 2008, 11:49:08 AM

The news is reporting that there was a magnitude 5 earthquake somewhere between Indiana, and Illinois.

They also report minimal damage. Any first hand reports

SJFedor · April 18, 2008, 11:52:57 AM

Didn't feel it down here. Ironic though, as we're starting a statewide exercise for just such a thing tomorrow...

nesagsar · April 18, 2008, 12:26:34 PM

I felt it in Peoria, about 170 miles from epicenter. The ground shook very noticeably for about 4 seconds then subsided. The epicenter was too far East to be the New Madrid Fault but still close enough to be alarming in that it could effect the Madrid line.

mfantroy · April 18, 2008, 01:22:27 PM

I am in St.Louis, we have a major gas main break in North St.Louis, some of the concrete from some of the over passes fell off. Nothing to serious. At the time of the Quake my dog woke me up jumping on the bed and trying to hide under me, at first I thought someone was breaking in, When I went to check the water in my 110 gallon fish tank was moving and the fish were all freaked. So it was a very interesting start to the morning!

mfantroy · April 18, 2008, 03:39:14 PM

we just had another 4.5 is what the NWS is reporting.. I was in my office working and my computer monitor was shaking.

davidsinn · April 18, 2008, 03:57:46 PM

I felt that one from way the frick up in NW Indiana.

SAR-EMT1 · April 18, 2008, 05:34:03 PM

All told there have been 8 according to the usgs. One (a 2.4) had an epicenter far to the north of the others (near Rockford).

There has been minor damage and several minor injuries from the two primary incidents (5.2 and 4.7) And were felt as far away as New Orleans, NY, and Atlanta.
The 5.2 one that occured at 4ish woke up everyone in my complex, knocked every picture and certificate off my walls and set off the fire alarm. Personally I thought it was a tornado (I hadnt heard an explosion and being woke up by the [darn] fire alarm while the building shook wasn't enjoyable. I live roughly 40 miles NW of the epicenter. (Bone Gap, IL / West Salem, IL)

Im on call with FEMA to drive down, but I believe it wont mature.

G+10 · April 18, 2008, 05:38:46 PM

Quote from: mmcwilliams on April 18, 2008, 03:39:14 PM
we just had another 4.5 is what the NWS is reporting.. I was in my office working and my computer monitor was shaking.

I'm over in Creve Coeur on the 5th floor. It was a very interesting vertical oscillation, very mild at the same two beats per second I noticed last night. I always imagined it to be a higher frequency, maybe as the waves propagate over distance?

John Gniewkowski

SAR-EMT1 · April 18, 2008, 05:42:19 PM

The quakes (for the most part) Folow a path underneath the "Bonpas Creek"
just to the east of West Salem and Bone Gap (NW of Evansville)

SAR-EMT1 · April 18, 2008, 05:44:20 PM

USGS is now stating the possibility of Liquification having occured during the 5.2 quake. Now listing the 4.2 as an "official" aftershock.

mfantroy · April 18, 2008, 05:49:37 PM

Quote from: G+10 on April 18, 2008, 05:38:46 PM
I'm over in Creve Coeur on the 5th floor. It was a very interesting vertical oscillation, very mild at the same two beats per second I noticed last night. I always imagined it to be a higher frequency, maybe as the waves propagate over distance?

John Gniewkowski

Now That would have been interesting, I am on a one level warehouse so I didn't see any movement other then my monitor

Maj Ballard · April 18, 2008, 05:59:41 PM

My mom felt the second one in Sikeston, MO.

DrDave · April 18, 2008, 08:14:11 PM

Dr. Dave checking in from St. Louis.

We live in west St. Louis County in Wildwood, the 4:37 am quake woke all of us up wondering "what was that". Laying in bed, I felt the house bounce up and down gently. Interestingly, no hanging lights were swaying and our fish tank was okay.

Was at work when the 10:15 am aftershock hit. I'm on the third floor in Kirkwood, Missouri, and it felt like five 400 pound guys ran down the interior hallway of the building: rumbled, swayed a little. Didn't effect the other occupants much -- I went out into the interior hall expecting chaos and people and there was no one there. (I ws probably the only dumb boob still in the building!)

Dr. Dave

Whocares · April 18, 2008, 08:25:01 PM

I am surprised at how many people are surprised. I mean, yes I know it does not happen every day. The largest earthquake recorded in the US was at the New Madrid Fault in 1812. So it is only time when the new large earthquake will hit.

brasda91 · April 18, 2008, 09:30:14 PM

It woke me and my wife up. At first it sounded like real heavy wind and trees hitting the house. Then as I woke up more, it sounded like the house being twisted. My first thought was an earthquake. My wife thought the wind was blowing. I got up and checked outside, no wind blowing. Got back in bed and told her I thought it was an earthquake. She thought I was crazy (KY is having a practice eval this weekend and we have been getting simulated e-mails regarding an earthquake). When her alarm went off, she was surprised to hear it was indeed an earthquake.

mikeylikey · April 18, 2008, 10:47:11 PM

When I grew up as a kid in Indiana there was a guy that predicted a HUGE earthquake at the new madrid fault that was supposed to hit in 1990-1991. Does anyone remember this guy? It was such a "big deal" that we had earthquake drills in school and had to pack survival kits the first week into the school year. I just can't seem to find any reference to the guy now. He was supposedly a well-known earthquake specialist.

Anyway, when I lived in Illinois in the 80's there was a similar earthquake to what happened today and I do believe it actually caused a few fatalities from a building collapse.

Sorry for trip into my past.

Smokey · April 18, 2008, 11:44:32 PM

Huh....5.2 is a wussy quake

Come out to CA and we'll show you midwest boys a real quake......we don't even notice the little ones like yours

DrDave · April 18, 2008, 11:51:44 PM

That would be the late Dr. Iben Browning, meterologist, who predicted that a major earthquake would hit near the town of New Madrid, Missouri, on 3 December 1990.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1200/is_n24_v138/ai_9267226/pg_1

Dr. Dave

mikeylikey · April 18, 2008, 11:54:22 PM

^ Actually since the midwest is FLAT, the effects of minor quakes can be more destructive than those in California! In 1984 a 5.7 which centered in Illinois and Indiana was felt all the way in Atlanta and Boston.

because the land is flat the wave has nothing to slow it down, it actually picks up force at it travels out until it hits the hidden MTN ranges under the flats of the midwestern states.

I almost became a geologist. Wow, what my life could have been like.

mikeylikey · April 18, 2008, 11:55:18 PM

Quote from: DrDave on April 18, 2008, 11:51:44 PM
That would be the late Dr. Iben Browning, meteorologist, who predicted that a major earthquake would hit near the town of New Madrid, Missouri, on 3 December 1990.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1200/is_n24_v138/ai_9267226/pg_1

Dr. Dave

Thanks Dr Dave! I can't believe after all my Googling, I couldn't find that! :clap: