Worthy Christian News > US News > Earthquake Rattles New York City Region, Strongest Since 1884

Earthquake Rattles New York City Region, Strongest Since 1884

by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – In an area typically not associated with seismic activity, Lebanon, New Jersey, was hit by a 4.8 magnitude quake, shortly followed by a 4.0 magnitude aftershock that affected New York City, Philadelphia, and surrounding regions, marking the most powerful earthquake to strike the region in 140 years.

According to the USGS, following the morning earthquake, there have been at least 18 aftershocks of varying magnitudes. The most significant of these aftershocks happened in Gladstone, New Jersey, just before 6 p.m. on Friday, recording a magnitude of 4.0.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) announced that a 4.8 magnitude earthquake, occurring at 10:23 a.m. ET near Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, about 45 miles west of New York City, was felt by 42 million people, with people feeling the tremor as far as Maryland and Massachusetts.

Notably, the quake’s epicenter was situated less than seven miles northeast of former President Donald Trump’s National Golf Club Bedminster, placing it near the heart of the seismic activity.

Earthquakes occur less frequently on the East Coast of the U.S. compared to the West Coast, largely due to the East Coast’s position away from the boundaries of tectonic plates. The most significant earthquakes in the eastern U.S. typically happen along the mid-Atlantic Ridge, a geological feature that runs through Iceland and stretches across the Atlantic Ocean.

The USGS has recorded that earthquakes of magnitude 5 or higher occurred near New York City in 1737, 1783, and 1884.