COLUMBIA, S.C. — A small earthquake shook Georgia and South Carolina late Friday, jolting homes and rattling residents hundreds of miles apart.
The quake happened at 10:23 p.m. and had a preliminary magnitude of 4.1, according to the U.S. Geological Survey’s website. It was centered seven miles west of the town of Edgefield, S.C. , and was felt as far west as Atlanta and as far north as Hickory, N.C., each about 150 miles away.
“It’s a large quake for that area,” said USGS geophysicist Dale Grant. “It was felt all over the place.”
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reported two nearby dams on the Savannah River appeared to be undamaged, but planned a thorough inspection Saturday morning, Edgefield County Emergency Preparedness Director Mike Casey said.
Authorities across South Carolina said their 911 centers were inundated with calls of people reporting what they thought were explosions or plane crashes as the quake’s low rumble spread across the state.
No damages or injuries from the quake had been reported, said South Carolina Emergency Management Division spokesman Derrec Becker.
Earthquakes aren’t unheard of in the region. A 4.3-magnitude earthquake happened in Georgia in August 1974. Three others of similar magnitude have been felt in South Carolina in the past 40 years, according to the USGS.
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