Whole Lot Of (Midwest) Shakin' Going On

Who says folks in the Midwest are nice and stable? Midwest quake felt far and wide

People nearly 900 miles away felt a magnitude-5.2 earthquake that shook southern Illinois early Friday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

There were no immediate reports of major damage after the predawn quake, which struck at 4:36 a.m. (5:36 a.m. ET).

However, some minor damage was seen in the region.

Debris fell on a sidewalk and shattered in Louisville, Kentucky, after part of a cornice fell off a brick building, according to footage from the city's CNN affiliate WHAS-TV.

The epicenter of the earthquake -- the strongest in the region in 40 years -- was about seven miles below ground and 38 miles north-northwest of Evansville, Indiana, the USGS said.

Here is a map with the centers of other quakes in this region of the Midwest since 1990.


So, the fact there was a quake there was not unusual. The magnitude of it was what made it something out of the ordinary.

I am too far north to have felt it, although I'll have to see if friends and family in St. Louis got rattled around.

Radio talk-show host George Noory said he felt the quake in his St. Louis home.

"Everything shook," Noory said. "I thought the building was going to collapse."

I'm not doubting George felt it, but what are the chances the host of "Coast To Coast AM" was being a little dramatic about the whole thing? (Answer: Pretty good.)