5.8 Virginia earthquake felt in Toronto
Posted August 23, 2011 2:10 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A major earthquake that originated in the United States was felt in Toronto on Tuesday afternoon, shaking buildings in the downtown core and forcing the evacuation of some offices.
The quake, which the U.S. Geological Survey said had a magnitude of 5.8, hit Virginia just before 2 p.m. and was also felt in Washington, D.C., New York City, and North Carolina. People called, tweeted and emailed CityNews shortly thereafter to say it had been felt in the Toronto area as well.
“Police received a few calls from the public about their building shaking. Possibly connected to earthquake in Virginia. No reported injuries,” Toronto Const. Wendy Drummond wrote on Twitter.
“A moderate earthquake was reported in Virginia and felt in Ontario,” Earthquakes Canada confirmed. People from Ottawa to New Brunswick also reported feeling the tremor, The Canadian Press reported.
“It was a shallow earthquake, literally almost right at the surface,” CityNews meteorologist Adam Stiles explained.
“That means the energy is a little more focused. Instead of travelling up and out, the path of the quake just radiates outwards,” he added.
The epicentre of the earthquake was Mineral, Va. There have been no aftershocks, but “there could be some 2s and 3s in the future,” a U.S. Geological Survey member said at a news conference.
No damage has been reported. However, the Pentagon was evacuated.
The U.S. Geological Survey said on its website that the earthquake was six kilometres deep. The earthquake didn’t just stop in Toronto, hitting towns all around the GTA and beyond.
“I’m in Vaughan at work and I thought someone was behind my chair shaking it,” CityNews.ca reader Rosanne Imineo wrote.
Bonnie Baillie, who lives in Niagara Falls, felt the tremors there and said they lasted for about two minutes.
Even Goderich, hit by a devastating tornado on the weekend, was affected by the earthquake. Our readers also reported feeling the quake in Bolton, Waterloo and in Wilberforce, near Haliburton.
On Twitter, @AndieAllie reported feeling the shakes in Hamilton, while @Seltaar said the earthquake also hit St. Thomas.
“We just evacuated our office in Markham,” @StElizFdn wrote.
The window below tracks the hashtag #earthquake on Twitter
