Second earthquake shakes Western North Carolina in just over 24 hours, geologists say
Two earthquakes hit Western North Carolina in just over 24 hours, becoming the latest tremors to rattle the state, geologists say.
The latest quake hit about 1 mile from Valley Hill at 10:11 p.m. Monday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Valley Hill is roughly 2 miles southwest of Hendersonville and 25 miles south of Asheville.
As of Tuesday afternoon, no one reported feeling the 2.1-magnitude tremor, which was more than 6 miles deep, according to USGS data.
Monday’s earthquake was the most recent to hit the area.
The day before, a 2.3-magnitude tremor shook the ground more than 1 mile southwest of Valley Hill, geologists say. The 5-mile deep quake hit at 9 p.m. Sunday, according to officials.
People in the region said they felt the tremor, and some reported experiencing “weak” shaking but no damage, according to USGS.
And on Thursday, a 2.3-magnitude earthquake hit the same part of Western North Carolina, The News & Observer reported. It came hours after another tremor was recorded over the Tennessee border.
The three North Carolina quakes were reported in an area that has historically seen earthquake activity.
Though severe seismic activity is “infrequent” in the state, “there have been a few strong earthquakes in our mountain region in the last 100 years,” the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality said on its website.
Earthquakes lower than 2.5-magnitude typically aren’t felt and can happen up to 900,000 times annually worldwide, according to Michigan Tech.
