Local NewsNational

Actions

5.1 magnitude earthquake rattles Virginia, North Carolina

Posted at 7:30 AM, Aug 09, 2020
and last updated 2020-08-09 10:30:26-04

RICHMOND, Va. -- A 5.1 magnitude earthquake rattled parts of Virginia and North Carolina Sunday morning.

There have been no immediate reports of damage, nor injuries.

The earthquake was recorded at 8:07 a.m. and was centered near the state line in Sparta, North Carolina, about 300 miles southwest of Richmond.

Sunday's earthquake is one of the biggest to impact Virginia since the 5.8-magnitude earthquake centered in Mineral, Virginia on August 23, 2011. And the largest earthquake in North Carolina since a 5.2 earthquake in 1916.

"According to the U.S. Geological Survey database, the 5.1 magnitude earthquake near Sparta this morning is the second strongest earthquake to occur in North Carolina 1900," the National Weather Service Greenville-Spartanburg Office wrote on Twitter. "The strongest was a 5.2 magnitude earthquake near Skyland, North Carolina in February 1916."

The 5.1 magnitude earthquake was preceded by multiple, smaller "foreshocks" on Saturday.

Multiple aftershocks are expected over the next few weeks.

The USGS forecasted a 4 percent chance of one or more aftershocks that are larger than magnitude 5.1.

This story originally reported by Mike Stone on wtvr.com.