Virginia seismic zones
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The Virginia seismic zones in the U.S. state of Virginia include the Giles County seismic zone and the Central Virginia seismic zone. Earthquakes in the state are irregular and rarely reach over 4.5 in magnitude.
1897 event
The May 31, 1897, event was the strongest in Virginia's history. With a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe) this shock destroyed many chimneys and created ground effects over a large area. It had a magnitude of 5.6 {{M|fa|link=y}} (a seismic scale that is based on an isoseismal map or the event's felt area) and had severe effects in Narrows, where ground motion was observed and the flow of streams was disrupted.{{citation|first1=Carl W.|last1=Stover|first2=Jerry L.|last2=Coffman|editor-last=Scott|editor-first=Richard W. Jr.|title=Seismicity of the United States, 1568–1989 (Revised)|url={{google books|bY0KAQAAIAAJ|plainurl=yes}}|series=U.S. Geological Survey professional paper |volume=1527|year=1993|publisher=United States Government Printing Office|pages=[{{google books|bY0KAQAAIAAJ|page=376|plainurl=yes}} 376]–[{{google books|bY0KAQAAIAAJ|page=378|plainurl=yes}} 378] |oclc=26363877 }}
2003 earthquakes
On December 9, 2003, at 3:59 pm EST (20:59 UTC), a magnitude 4.5 event occurred near Farmville about {{convert|30|mi|km}} west of Richmond, and was felt strongly across the state. Tremors were reported in North Carolina, Washington DC, and suburban Maryland, eastern West Virginia, southern Pennsylvania, and portions of the Delmarva Peninsula. This event was located at 37.728° N, 78.087° W, at a depth of less than {{convert|5|km|mi|abbr=on}} and may have occurred due to rupture along the Lakeside fault.{{cite news |url= http://www.scienceblog.com/community/older/2003/A/20037488.html |title= Virginia earthquake not a fluke in the seismically active Southeast |work= ScienceBlog |date= December 2003 |access-date=February 21, 2011}}
2011 earthquake
{{main|2011 Virginia earthquake}}
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported that a magnitude 5.8 {{M|w|link=y}} earthquake hit Virginia on Tuesday, August 23, 2011, at 17:51:04 UTC (1:51 pm Eastern Daylight Time). The quake occurred at an approximate depth of 3.7 miles and was centered in Louisa County (location at 37.936°N, 77.933°W), 5 miles SSW of Mineral, Virginia and 37 miles NW of Richmond, Virginia's capital.{{cite web|url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/se082311a.html |title=Magnitude 5.8 – VIRGINIA |publisher=United States Geological Survey|department=Earthquake Hazards Program |date=March 20, 2012 |access-date=April 6, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 29, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120329153631/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/se082311a.php }} Shaking was felt from Atlanta, Georgia to Illinois to Detroit, Michigan to Barrie, Ontario to New Brunswick.{{cite web |title=USGS Community Internet Intensity Map: Virginia |publisher=United States Geological Survey|department=Earthquake Hazards Program |url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/dyfi/events/se/082311a/us/se082311a_ciim_zoomout.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 27, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111227130531/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/dyfi/events/se/082311a/us/se082311a_ciim_zoomout.pdf }}{{cite web|url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/dyfi/events/se/082311a/us/index.html |title=M5.8 – Virginia |publisher=United States Geological Survey|department=Earthquake Hazards Program |date=November 30, 2011 |access-date=April 6, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 28, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120428221438/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/dyfi/events/se/082311a/us/index.html }} Many Washington, DC buildings saw precautionary evacuations.{{cite news| url = http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_EAST_COAST_QUAKE?SITE=INEVA&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181009211327/http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_EAST_COAST_QUAKE?SITE=INEVA&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT| url-status = dead| archive-date = October 9, 2018| title = Quake rocks Washington area, felt on East Coast| agency = Associated Press (AP)| date = August 23, 2011| access-date = August 23, 2011}}{{cite news| url =https://vancouversun.com/news/thewest/quake+hits+East+Coast+felt+Toronto/5295200/story.html | title = Strong earthquake hits Canada, U.S. East Coast |work=Vancouver Sun | date = August 23, 2011 }}{{dead link|date=February 2017}}
The earthquake caused an estimated $70 million in damage in Louisa County and forced Louisa County High School and Thomas Jefferson Elementary School to close for the year as well as rendered about a dozen homes unlivable.{{cite news| url =http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/virginia-news/2011/aug/31/tdmet01-louisa-damage-estimate-70-million-ar-1275161/ | archive-url =https://archive.today/20130204160245/http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/virginia-news/2011/aug/31/tdmet01-louisa-damage-estimate-70-million-ar-1275161/ | url-status =dead | archive-date =February 4, 2013 | title = Louisa damage estimate $70 million | work = Richmond Times Dispatch | date = August 30, 2011}}{{cite news |first=Greta |last=Kreuz |url =http://www.wjla.com/articles/2011/08/earthquake-damage-to-lousia-county-schools-could-reach-60m-65846.html | title=Earthquake damage to Louisa County schools close to $60M |work=ABC 7 News |date=August 30, 2011 |publisher=Sinclair Broadcast Group }} Other buildings were damaged as far away as Prince George's County, Maryland. Three decorative pinnacles at Washington National Cathedral fell.{{cite web |url=http://www.dcquake.nationalcathedral.org/ |website=Washington National Cathedral |title=Earthquake at 6 Months |access-date=April 6, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 1, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120401152342/http://www.nationalcathedral.org/dcquake }} The Washington Monument was closed due to cracks in the top section.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/earthquake-rattles-washington-area/2011/08/23/gIQATMOGZJ_story_1.html|title=5.8 Virginia earthquake shakes East Coast, rattles residents|last=Achenbach|first=Joel|date=August 23, 2011|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=2|access-date=January 10, 2012}}{{cite web|url=https://www.nps.gov/wamo/washington-monument-earthquake-update.htm|title=Washington Monument Earthquake Update|publisher=National Park Service}}
See also
References
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{{coord|37.728|N|78.087|W|source:enwiki-plaintext-parser|display=title}}
External links
- {{cite web |title=Information by Region—Virginia |publisher=United States Geological Survey|department=Earthquake Hazards Program |url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/byregion/virginia.php }}
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