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An earthquake shook the New York tristate area on Friday morning, sending residents across several states into a panic — or, at least, animated conversation at the water cooler.
The approximate epicenter of the earthquake was in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, the U.S. Geological Survey said. According to preliminary data from the USGS, the earthquake measured at 4.8 magnitude, and tremors were felt as far south as Charlotte, North Carolina, and as far north as Ottawa, Canada.
Residents in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania reported buildings shaking for several seconds. James Pittinger, the mayor of Lebanon, New Jersey, told MSNBC that items fell off the shelves in his home and his dog ran for cover.
"It's the craziest thing I've ever experienced," he said.
New York and the Northeast experience earthquakes with surprising frequency, although not often of this magnitude. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said at a Friday briefing that it was “one of the largest earthquakes on the East Coast to occur in the last century.”
The strongest recorded earthquake to hit New York City was a 5.2-magnitude quake in 1884.
In the U.S., earthquakes are most common on the West Coast, especially in California, where the San Andreas Fault Line runs under the length of the state. Some East Coast residents compared the drastic reactions to Tuesday's (relatively moderate) earthquake to the tremors that Californians experience more frequently.
There are no reports of major damage from the earthquake so far, but the Federal Aviation Administration issued brief ground stops at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City and Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey.