5.9 magnitude quake hits Virginia, tremors felt in NJ too

As per the latest conformations from the United States Geological Survey (USGS), an earthquake of the magnitude 5.9 hit central Virginia at 1:51 pm Tuesday. The state survey also reported the tremor to be the strongest since 1987.

The USGS reports maintained that the quake lasted for 30 seconds and its depth was 3.7 miles. The exact location of the quake was detected 27 miles east of Charlottesville, Va. The quake of such magnitude comes as a surprise since the region is not quite quake prone, said multiple reports.

Mike Blanpied from the USGS Earthquake Hazard Program mentioned Tuesday’s earthquake to be the largest to have struck Virginia, since decades.

The lava stemmed from Mineral, Va., a region located in between Richmond and Charlottesville, but the shock was felt right along the East Coast. The quake smashed property and rattled buildings in Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, Md. Many buildings were also evacuated in Columbia District and New York.

No fatalities or injuries, owing to the tremor, are reported in the new release issued from the Governor Chris Christie’s Office at 4 p.m. Tuesday. Country’s infrastructure like road and rail network, dams and bridges, basins, power system, and nuclear facilities are also safe, said the news release.

New Jersey reports on quake
"I'm looking in my rear-view mirror to see if someone is jumping on my truck," Newark animal control officer, Arthur Skinner, explained how the truck started jerking from side to side.

Experts opined that though New Jersey often faces small quakes, seism lasting 20 to 30 seconds is something abnormal.

Martha Withjack, professor of geological sciences at Rutgers University in New Brunswick said, "It’s probably the largest one people have felt in New Jersey in decades… "The energy all the way from Virginia got transferred to us," Withjack said.