A small earthquake shook several parts of southern New England on Sunday morning. Officials said no injuries or damage were reported, though some social media posts showed minor harm to buildings.
This earthquake, which took place around 9.10am and could be felt in portions of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut, was initially reported as having a magnitude of 4.0.
The US Geological Survey changed its assessment shortly thereafter, reporting a magnitude of 3.6, the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (Mema) said.
“There is NO tsunami danger from this earthquake,” said the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) tsunami program.
The quake’s epicenter was near Bliss Corner, an area of Dartmouth, Massachussetts, and had a depth of 10km.
Because the tremor was considered shallow, there was a heightened chance of minor damage and the quake would be expected to be felt across a greater area, NBC Boston reported.
Paul Caruso, a USGS geophysicist, told the New York Times: “We wouldn’t expect there to be significant damage from this earthquake.
“Earthquakes in this area are commonly felt very far away because the rocks in this area are very contiguous, very old, so they transmit the energy very well from earthquakes.”
Caruso told the newspaper southern New England had seen 26 quakes since 1963, but Sunday’s was among the largest.
“Living near the air force it really felt like the F-15s were flying under my house,” one Twitter user commented. “My kitties were definitely not happy.”
Torry Gaucher, a meteorologist with the US National Weather Service’s Boston office, posted a photo of a crack in his wall and said: “Well that is a new stress crack … bummed that my house felt it but I didn’t since I was in the hot tub.”
The New Bedford Fire department advised that anyone who felt the quake needed to check their furnace, gas lines and smokestacks.