A large earthquake that rocked New Jersey and surrounding states Friday morning has been followed by an aftershock quake with a magnitude of 2.0, according to officials from the U.S. Geological Survey.
The aftershock occurred about 11:20 a.m. and was centered west of Bedminster in Somerset County, the USGS reported. There were no immediate reports of any injuries or structural damage in the region from the main quake or the aftershock.
UPDATE: Four more aftershocks in New Jersey have been reported Friday afternoon, including one in Califon in Hunterdon County, two in Chester in Morris County and one in Whitehouse Station in Hunterdon.
The initial earthquake occurred at about 10:25 a.m. Friday and was deemed to be a magnitude 4.8 quake, centered about 4 miles north of Whitehouse Station in Readington, Hunterdon County. Although that magnitude is considered to be moderate strength, it is stronger than most of the earthquakes that New Jersey typically experiences and was felt across a far more widespread region.
During the morning quake, people in different areas of New Jersey said they felt their houses and offices shaking for about 10 to 20 seconds, with windows rattling, light fixtures moving and floors feeling like they were shifting. Some reported hearing loud rumbling noises similar to the sound of large trucks or low-flying helicopters.
The quake appeared to occur along the Ramapo fault and was felt as far south as Maryland and Delaware and as far north as Connecticut and Massachusetts, according to preliminary reports. It also was felt by people as far east as eastern Long Island in New York.
In recent years, New Jersey has experienced quakes ranging from a 1.7 magnitude earthquake southeast of Trenton in 2014 — weak enough that some people didn’t notice — to a 2.0 magnitude earthquake near Ringwood after Hurricane Sandy in 2012 to a 2.8 magnitude event near Bernardsville in 2015.
Mild temblors like these are typical of New Jersey earthquakes and mostly resulted in little damage.
The state geologist described the Friday morning earthquake as “near record-breaking for the Garden State,” according to state Environmental Commissioner Shawn LaTourette. An earthquake in 1783 in Rockaway Township “still holds the record at (magnitude) 5.3,” he said in a post on X.
In 2011, one of the largest earthquakes ever recorded in the eastern United States rocked a rural area of Virginia, sending shock waves through the ground across much of the East Coast, into New Jersey and as far away as Canada.
The Aug. 23, 2011 earthquake, which had a magnitude of 5.8 — a strength that’s rarely seen in the eastern U.S. — caused millions of dollars in structural damage to homes, schools and businesses in Virginia. It also damaged structures in Maryland and in Washington, D.C., including the Washington Monument.
Stories by Len Melisurgo
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Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com or on X at @LensReality.