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2024 New Jersey earthquake

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On April 5, 2024, at 10:23 EDT (14:23 UTC), a Mw 4.8 earthquake occurred in the U.S. state of New Jersey, with the epicenter in Tewksbury Township. While it was felt across the New York metropolitan area, Delaware Valley, the Washington D.C metropolitan area, and other parts of the northeastern United States between Virginia and Maine, it had a relatively minor impact, with no major damage reported.[2][3] There were dozens of aftershocks throughout the rest of the week and into the next.[4][5]

2024 New Jersey earthquake
Shake map showing the epicenter of the earthquake
USGS ShakeMap
UTC time2024-04-05 14:23:20
ISC event637118462
USGS-ANSSComCat
Local dateApril 5, 2024 (April 5, 2024)
Local time10:23
MagnitudeMwr4.8
Depth4.7 km (2.9 mi)
EpicenterTewksbury Township, New Jersey, U.S.[a]
40°41′20″N 74°45′14″W / 40.689°N 74.754°W / 40.689; -74.754
Areas affectedNew Jersey, New York
Max. intensityMMI VI (Strong)
AftershocksMw 3.7[1]
Map
Map of the main quake and aftershocks (map data)

It was the strongest earthquake to affect New Jersey since the 5.3 Mfa 1783 New Jersey earthquake,[6] and the strongest to hit New York City since an estimated 5.0 magnitude earthquake on August 10, 1884.[7][3]

Tectonic setting

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The causative fault for the earthquake was likely in the area of the Ramapo Fault zone,[8] which extends from Pennsylvania to New York[9] and was formed by the break-up of the supercontinent Pangaea during the Late Triassic.[10] Another possible origin is the Flemington Fault, a younger fault in the same area.[11]

The Whitehouse Station, New Jersey area had previously experienced an earthquake on March 14, 2024.[12] The USGS considers this to be part of the event sequence.[13]

Earthquake

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The earthquake had a moment magnitude of 4.8 and a depth of 2.9 miles (4.7 km). Its epicenter was in Tewksbury Township, New Jersey,[a] at 40.689°N 74.754°W, about 1 mile (1.6 km) north of Oldwick and 5 miles (8.0 km) east of Lebanon.[14] Tremors were felt all across the Northeastern United States from Maine in the north to Washington, D.C., and Norfolk, Virginia, in the south.[3][15]

As of August 29, 2024, over 205 aftershocks were reported,[5][16][17] the strongest of which had a magnitude of 3.7 and took place about 4 miles (6 km) from Gladstone around 17:59, around 7 hours and 36 minutes after the original quake.[2][18][4] Aftershocks have varied in magnitude, ranging from 3.0 to 1.0. The USGS projected a 12% chance of an aftershock with a magnitude greater than 3 and a 1% chance of a stronger earthquake with a magnitude above 4.[2][3]

Impact

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Several buildings in New York City, Philadelphia, and Long Island were shaken.[19][15] The USGS estimated that the earthquake was felt by about 42 million people in the area.[15]

The earthquake interrupted a meeting of the Security Council on the Israel–Hamas war at the United Nations Headquarters in Manhattan,[20][19] while a performance at the New York Philharmonic was briefly delayed by cell phones sounding an alert at 11:02, which was sent about 40 minutes after the earthquakes were felt.[2][21][22] Gas leaks were reported in Rockland County, New York,[2] and an administrative building in Morristown, New Jersey.[23] In Huntington, New York, a vehicle was damaged after falling into a sinkhole shortly after the earthquake.[24]

 
Damage to John Taylor's Grist Mill

Up to 150 buildings were damaged across New York City, and a school gym in East New York sustained damage.[25] Four three-story houses on Seventh Avenue in Newark, New Jersey, were damaged by the earthquake. Twenty-eight residents were evacuated, but no injuries were reported. Three of the houses were "partially toppled" and were subsequently condemned.[2][6] The upper portion of the 264-year old Col. John Taylor's Grist Mill collapsed into a road.[20] Additionally, the earthquake caused water main breaks in Essex County and Morris County.[26][27]

Damage to a Northeast Philadelphia home was the only confirmed report of structural damage caused by the earthquake in Pennsylvania.[28]

Aftermath

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The Federal Aviation Administration completely halted flights at Newark Liberty International Airport, Philadelphia International Airport[29] and John F. Kennedy International Airport. Arrivals into Baltimore/Washington International, LaGuardia, and Teterboro Airports were delayed.[2] The air traffic control tower at Newark Liberty International Airport was also evacuated.[30] Five flights bound for Newark were diverted to Lehigh Valley International Airport in Allentown, Pennsylvania.[20]

The first emergency alert sent to New York City residents came 26 minutes after the earthquake to subscribers of the Notify NYC service. A Wireless Emergency Alert was sent out to the broader region even later, with New Yorkers reporting it arriving 40 minutes after the earthquake.[31] Amid criticism, New York City Emergency Management Commissioner Zach Iscol defended the delayed response in a press conference, saying that "Twenty minutes is very fast for a public alert,"[32] and that they needed that time to confirm that it was indeed an earthquake.[31]

The PATCO Speedline was temporarily suspended for inspection "out of an abundance of caution."[6] Amtrak train speeds were restricted throughout the Northeast while railroad tracks were being inspected for damage, and NJ Transit trains on all lines was delayed around 20 minutes due to track inspection.[33] AirTrain Newark at the Newark Liberty International Airport was also closed for inspection while its flights were ungrounded.[2]

The Holland Tunnel, a major crossing of the Hudson River, was briefly closed for inspection between 11:00 and 11:15 local time.[19][6] The Lincoln Tunnel was also briefly closed,[34] backing up traffic in Weehawken.

Within hours of the earthquake, a custom T-shirt shop in Manhattan began printing a joke souvenir reading "I survived the NYC earthquake April 5, 2024." The store put it on the shop window and a pedestrian took a photo of it, which was shared widely on social media, causing hundreds of sales.[35][36][37]

See also

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Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Notes

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  1. ^ a b The United States Geological Survey located the epicenter of the earthquake near Whitehouse Station, New Jersey.

References

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  1. ^ Zanger, Jesse (April 5, 2024). "Earthquake, aftershocks rattle NYC and beyond: "One of the largest" East Coast quakes in the last century – CBS New York". CBS News. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Live Updates: 4.8 Magnitude Earthquake Rattles New York City and Northeast". The New York Times. April 5, 2024. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d Shapiro, Emily (April 5, 2024). "New Jersey, New York City rocked by rare 4.8 magnitude earthquake: Live updates". United States: ABC News. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  4. ^ a b Meko, Hurubie (April 5, 2024). "What appeared to be an aftershock was felt throughout New Jersey and New York City Friday afternoon at around 6 p.m." The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  5. ^ a b Conklin, Eric (April 7, 2024) "N.J. earthquake aftershock tally climbs to 34 after Friday’s big tremor. More expected." Archived April 7, 2024, at the Wayback Machine NJ Advance Media
  6. ^ a b c d Chow, Denise (April 5, 2024). "Earthquake hits U.S. East Coast, shaking buildings from Philadelphia to Boston". NBC News. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  7. ^ Holliday Smith, Rachel; Homenuk, John (April 5, 2024). "What to Know About NYC's Biggest Earthquake in 140 Years". The City. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  8. ^ Bush, Evan (April 5, 2024). "New Jersey earthquake calls attention to ancient, potentially unmapped fault lines". NBC News. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  9. ^ Sykes, L.R., J.G. Armbruster, W.Y. Kim, and L. Seeber (2008), Observations and Tectonic Setting of Historic and Instrumentally Located Earthquakes in the Greater New York City–Philadelphia Area, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 98(4), 1696–1719.
  10. ^ Kleeman, Katrin (September 10, 2018). "29 November 1783: The Night the US East Coast Was Awoken by 'a Small Shock of an Earthquake". Environmental History Now. Archived from the original on January 10, 2024. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
  11. ^ Bradley, Kyle; Hubbard, Judith A. (April 5, 2024). "M4.8 New Jersey earthquake shakes Northeastern United States". Earthquake Insights. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  12. ^ "M 2.2 – 5 km NNE of Whitehouse Station, New Jersey". United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  13. ^ USGS page, see "Event Sequence" Archived April 6, 2024, at the Wayback Machine Accessed:7:49 EDT April 7, 2024
  14. ^ "M 4.8 – 2024 Whitehouse Station, New Jersey Earthquake". United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  15. ^ a b c "Magnitude 4.8 earthquake shakes Long Island and New York City areas". Newsday. Associated Press. April 5, 2024. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  16. ^ Staff • •, NBC New York (April 11, 2024). "More than 50 aftershocks detected so far, more possible, as USGS deploys 'kits' to study New Jersey shaking". NBC New York. Archived from the original on April 12, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  17. ^ "N.J. shaken by 2.6 magnitude aftershock, 159th since April quake". Daily News. New York. May 1, 2024. Archived from the original on May 1, 2024. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  18. ^ "M 3.8 – 7 km SW of Gladstone, New Jersey". United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  19. ^ a b c Harte, Julia; Ax, Joseph (April 5, 2024). "Magnitude 4.8 earthquake hits New York City region, USGS says". Reuters. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  20. ^ a b c "US East Coast earthquake rattles millions, but region escapes sweeping damage". Associated Press News. April 5, 2024. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  21. ^ "Earthquake shakes New York City, New Jersey: Live updates". Associated Press News. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  22. ^ "Yes, New York City Had an Earthquake Today". Curbed. April 5, 2024. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  23. ^ Westhoven, William (April 5, 2024). "Morris County shuts administration building in Morristown after earthquake causes gas leak". North Jersey Media Group. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  24. ^ "Police: Jeep falls into sinkhole following earthquake in Huntington". News 12 – Long Island. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  25. ^ "Earthquake Update: NYC Reveals Building Damage Details". Patch.com. April 8, 2024. Archived from the original on April 10, 2024. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  26. ^ Sanchez, Ray (April 6, 2024). "Aftershocks rattle Northeast after rare 4.8 magnitude earthquake hits region". Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  27. ^ "UPDATE: Aftershocks continue following 4.8 magnitude earthquake; part of Randolph out of water". Roxbury Register. New Jersey Hills Media Group. April 6, 2024. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  28. ^ "1 confirmed report of structural damage in Philadelphia after New Jersey earthquake shakes region". CBS News. April 6, 2024. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
  29. ^ Earthquake hits East Coast, impact felt in Philly, NJ, suburbs Archived April 6, 2024, at the Wayback Machine, NBC 10 Philadelphia, April 5, 2024
  30. ^ Elassar, Ray; Sanchez, Alaa (April 5, 2024). "Earthquake rattles Northeast with shaking felt from New England to DC region". CNN. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  31. ^ a b Fitzsimmons, Emma G. (April 5, 2024). "Why did New York City's earthquake alert take so long?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  32. ^ Way, Katie (April 5, 2024). "NYC Pregames Solar Eclipse With a 4.8 Magnitude Earthquake". Hell Gate. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  33. ^ Sullivan, Brian K; Gindis, Mia; Woodhouse, Skylar (April 5, 2024). "NY Area Hit by Biggest Quake in 140 Years; Flights Disrupted". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  34. ^ US: A magnitude-4.8 earthquake in New Jersey causes minor transport disruptions on April 5. /update 1 Archived April 5, 2024, at the Wayback Machine, Crisis 24 Garda, April 5, 2024
  35. ^ Fuller, Thomas (April 5, 2024). "Earthquake Rattles New York and New Jersey, but Does Little Damage". The New York Times. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  36. ^ Williams, Jennifer (April 5, 2024). "Upper West Side shop cashes in on viral earthquake t-shirt". Fox 5 New York. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024.
  37. ^ Frederick, Joseph (April 5, 2024). Earthquake shirts created in New York to commemorate the rare occasion (Video). Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 6, 2024. {{cite AV media}}: Unknown parameter |agency= ignored (help)
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