JG-TC.com > News > Earthquake and aftershock shake area early Friday morning

TODAY'S HEADLINES

SPECIAL SECTION

ONLINE POLL

ONLINE EXTRAS

SITE TOOLS

OTHER LINKS

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Lee Enterprises

Friday, April 18, 2008 3:52 PM CDT
Earthquake and aftershock shake area early Friday morning
Epicenter of first 5.2 magnitude quake in Southern Illinois, says USGS

By Nathaniel West and Herb Meeker, Staff Writers

nwest@jg-tc.com

A considerable aftershock followed the largest earthquake felt in Illinois in four decades this morning.

The U.S. Geological Survey confirmed a 10:14 a.m. aftershock at a magnitude of 4.6, with its epicenter eight miles east of West Salem in Southern Illinois. The original 5.2 magnitude earthquake began just before 4:37 a.m. at its epicenter five miles northeast of Bellmont, which is 90 miles southeast of Coles County.

So far, there has been no indication of major damage or injury in East Central Illinois following the predawn earthquake.

“We’ve had no reports at all” of destruction from the earthquake, said Tom Watson, Coles County Emergency Management Agency director, at about 10 a.m.

After 5 a.m., Mattoon firefighters responded to a report of gas odor at a gas station on 21st Street, but no evidence of a gas line break was found.

Sheriff’s offices in area counties reported receiving numerous 911 calls.

Mattoon Building Inspector Kyle Gill said no reports of structural damage, especially to brick or masonry walls, were received by mid-morning.

“The earthquake woke me up and I thought this could cause some problems with bricks, but we’ve not had any reports this morning,” Gill said.

Charleston Public Works Director Curt Buescher said crews were asked early in the day to be on the lookout for earthquake-related damage to water/sewer lines or other city infrastructure. He said no damage had been reported as of late in the morning.

“Hopefully, there won’t be any damage at all,” Buescher said.

In Clark County, which of the area counties is among the nearest to the epicenter, EMA Deputy Director Michael Duvall said the earthquake “was felt in all parts of the county.”

This morning’s quake rivaled the magnitude 5.3 event in 1968 that had its epicenter in Hamilton County in Southern Illinois, said the USGS. Prior to that, the largest quake felt in Illinois originated in Missouri in 1895, according to the USGS.

Add your comments

*Member ID:
*Password:
Remember login? (requires cookies)
	Forgot Your Password?

Not already registered?
Then click Here.

Comment policy:

JG-TC.com encourages readers to engage in civil conversation with their neighbors. Comments that are submitted are not posted to the site immediately. They go into a queue to be moderated and may take several hours to be reviewed. Comments posted on Saturday may not be reviewed until Sunday afternoon.

In order to keep the page a set width, long lines (mostly long links) will be chopped. Try putting spaces in your links or consider using tinyurl.com to make a smaller link that you can include.

We will never edit or alter your comments, but we do reserve the right to remove comments that violate our code of conduct.

No comment may contain:

* Potentially libelous statements; such as accusing somebody of a crime, defamation of character, or statements that can harm somebody's reputation.
* Obscene, explicit, or racist language.
* Personal attacks, insults, threats, harassment or inciting violence.
* Commercial product promotions.

If you have any questions, please contact our moderator.

medic57 wrote on Apr 18, 2008 6:16 AM:

" It's Bush's fault. "

Harry Potter wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:09 AM:

" Rumor has it that RAK went screaming, where's my gun! "

Rotty wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:41 AM:

" We slept through it, until we were awoke, for a few moments, from a text message my sister sent. Then back to slumber land we went.
LOL
"

bob wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:59 AM:

" Yeah, I called 9-1-1 around 4:45 to confirm the quake and got NO ANSWER!!!! I realize they were probably overwhelmed but thank goodness no one had just suffered a heart attack in my house and I truly needed them. They could have at least called my number back. Wow, I truly feel safe!?!? "

HeinekenMan wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:01 AM:

" Ace reporting. Isn't there at least one resident who could be quoted? At least one person up and outside at 5 a.m.? Or at least 6 a.m.? I know of at least one gas station that opens that early. It's 8 a.m., and we have no voice here. Someone get on the ball. I'm more than 1,000 miles away, and I find almost nothing between two of the area's top newspapers. Not Decatur. Not Mattoon. Not Effingham. Just Champaign. "

The Question wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:03 AM:

" medic57 wrote on Apr 18, 2008 6:16 AM:
" It's Bush's fault. "
------
A sore spot for you, I see.
I can only imagine how disgusting it must be to look at your face in the mirror every morning and realize you're staring at a blind fool who voted for a chimpanzee. "

RAK wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:08 AM:

" While Harry Potter played w/ his "wand". "

sam adams 52 wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:22 AM:

" Does Gov. Blago have a tax on earthquakes yet? Numerous 911 calls? Why? By the time you are done dialing the quake is over and last I knew Charleston police dept did not have the anti-quake force field up and running yet. "

medic57 wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:45 AM:

" Is Broadway still standing? "

Rotty wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:18 AM:

" bob wrote on Apr 18, 2008 7:59 AM:
" Yeah, I called 9-1-1 around 4:45 to confirm the quake

.......

Why in the hell would someone call 911 for a few moments of getting your feet tickled?
bob, it's idiots like you who call the 911 Center, tie up their lines over stupid crap, & make it that much more difficult for them to be able to respond & help REAL emergencies.
Wake up & smell what you're shoveling, bob, because it's sure as hell not roses. "

hanrobec wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:21 AM:

" Heinekenman:
SHUT UP! Mr. West probably went to his home computer and filed the story from home. You will likely see more stories about it in tomorrow's paper. There are words for online people like you...they are called trolls. Aptly named, I think. "

~OpenUnated~ wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:28 AM:

" Bob - C'mon...you seriously called 911 to confirm an earthquake. What did you want the to do, I mean honestly?? And you know why they didn't answer? Because they were probably dealing with a whole bunch of 'Bobs'. "

Billie Brant wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:53 AM:

" I slept through it too Rotty. I didn't know about it until I woke up at 6:00 and heard it on WCIA News. My friend who lives south of the airport and my daughter who lives in town said it woke them up. They both said it sounded like the wind from a tornado and their houses were shaking. .....Hey Tom! Maybe it shook those sleepy 'shrooms up and throgh the ground too! Lol! I'll have to check it out! "

The Tattler wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:02 AM:

" Much Ado About Nothing. Get A Life Folks. "

hanrobec wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:02 AM:

" OpenUnated: I love you. Well said! "

Rotty wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:02 AM:

" Another article about the quake:
http://tinyurl.com/5yvazv
A map & stats on it:
http://tinyurl.com/5yw7g3 "

Rotty wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:14 AM:

" I hear ya, Billie.
We sent a message back to sis, checked the kids, they were OK & still asleep, looked out the window, all looked well, so we went back to bed.
No big deal, so we thought.
zzzzzzzzzzzz
LOL "

Rotty wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:21 AM:

" Looks like an aftershock just happened.
Weeeeeee!
LOL! "

krusayda wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:22 AM:

" There goes another one!! "

Django wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:37 AM:

" Jeez... how many morons (or "Bobs" as they are sometimes referred to) does it take to block up the 911 Emergency-Only lines by calling in just to say "Duh, mah house is a'goin' all shakey"! And THEN, the morons are upset about not getting a *response*!?!? Aren't there Stiff Fines for people who call 911 needlessly??? Now that'd be a "response"! "

Django wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:40 AM:

" Hey Bob, we just felt an aftershock... better call 911!! "

Bryant Lamphier wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:43 AM:

" RAK wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:08 AM:

" While Harry Potter played w/ his "wand". "

----------

ROFLMAO! Good one RAK- LOL

I smell a Harry Pooper name-change coming on.... pewww*

Go ahead Mr.Pooper-

Give yourself a little phony support-

as usual. "

Tom Andres wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:50 AM:

" billie, there was another little shake at 10:15! No question about it, and I didn't even have to dial 911 to confirm. LOL. I'm going out in the yard now to look for mushrooms. Thanks for the tip. "

HisChild wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:53 AM:

" We didn't sleep through it! We awakened at 4 thirty something... and it felt like our roof was coming down on us. I said I don't think any animal running across our roof would shake all the windows too! I think it's an earthquake! The rest of my family didn't think we would ever feel an earthquake in Charleston, but it wasn't windy and no trees were down, so it must have been some pee from an airplane! *LOL!* We looked around and saw some of our neighbors lights on too, so I guess we all must've gotten peed on *LOL!* "

HisChild wrote on Apr 18, 2008 10:54 AM:

" Billie, you are so funny! We get a kick outta ya all the time! Had to say it heehee! ;-} "

knobren wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:49 AM:

" We've had three earthquakes here today. I felt all of them.

The quake at 4:37 was a 5.2, the one at 5:15 was a 2.6, and the one at 10:14 was a 4.6.

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsww/Quakes/us2008qzbw.php

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsus/Maps/US2/38.40.-89.-87.php
"

krusayda wrote on Apr 18, 2008 11:52 AM:

" "Charleston Public Works Director Curt Buescher said crews were asked early in the day to be on the lookout for earthquake-related damage to water/sewer lines or other city infrastructure. He said no damage had been reported as of late in the morning."

That's good news, I wouldn't want them to have to jacj the rates again to fix them.
"

Rotty wrote on Apr 18, 2008 12:12 PM:

" [plays the theme from the Twilight Zone]

I wondered who was sending me a message when I made my 10:14am post. Whew!
Dang! I didn't know typing comments to the JG-TC Comment areas had reprecussions like that!?
Wowzer!
LOL! "

~OpenUnated~ wrote on Apr 18, 2008 1:47 PM:

" Poor Poor Bob ~ He makes one misjudgement and... Now he's famous!!!
"

susanfiscus6 wrote on Apr 18, 2008 2:00 PM:

" we live in saint joseph and my husband said he saw a picture moving. he said he didn't know what was going on but it scared him. he's never felt one before and it left him shaken up. "

Equalizer wrote on Apr 18, 2008 2:38 PM:

" Rotty wrote on Apr 18, 2008 12:12 PM:
" [plays the theme from the Twilight Zone]

Hahaha Rotty! I heard the Theme from The Twilight Zone! LOL!

I happened to be home and was in the yard with the dogs. They both started barking at the same time and scratching the ground right before the aftershock. Then as it happened, one of them squaled and jumped up into the air, it was so funny. He kept sniffing the ground and looking at me funny one ear up and one down, head tilted...as if he was saying...what the h was that? LOL! "

krusayda wrote on Apr 18, 2008 3:39 PM:

" Who wouldn't be? "

cd wrote on Apr 18, 2008 4:22 PM:

" HeinekenMan wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:01 AM:

" Ace reporting. Isn't there at least one resident who could be quoted? At least one person up and outside at 5 a.m.? Or at least 6 a.m.? I know of at least one gas station that opens that early. It's 8 a.m., and we have no voice here. Someone get on the ball. I'm more than 1,000 miles away, and I find almost nothing between two of the area's top newspapers. Not Decatur. Not Mattoon. Not Effingham. Just Champaign. "
===============================
Since the JG-TC is off the press by 4AM, I can't see how they could get it in the paper. Check the Paris Beacon, they use to be a PM delivered paper.
"

hanrobec wrote on Apr 18, 2008 5:28 PM:

" cd: In the event of something large, there would be an evening edition of the jg-tc. "

hanrobec wrote on Apr 18, 2008 5:32 PM:

" Equalizer: I was wondering if any of the animals would react before a tremor. Your dog would have been a sight to see. I had always heard that cats and dogs and other animals had a sense about earthquakes and seizures. Personally, my cats couldn't have cared less and I couldn't hear any reaction from the neighborhood dogs. "

Savant wrote on Apr 18, 2008 6:55 PM:

" I called 911 after calling the non-emergency number first and not getting an answer. I had somewhat a possible legitimate reason for doing so - I thought I might of had a seizure and needed an ambulance to take me to the hospital! The professional earthquake analyst at 911 assured me though that it was an earthquake. Joking aside though I did call the non-emergency number which was not answered then I called 911 seriously wondering if a meth lab might have blown up or if it was in fact just an earth quake. "

what? wrote on Apr 18, 2008 8:24 PM:

" Surely its an omen. Not to worry, once you get raptured your'e exemt from all these earthquakes and whatnot. "

hanrobec wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:20 PM:

" Savant: You are brave to admit calling 911 after what has been done to poor BOB. Joking aside, my first thought was earthquake--then I though train derailment or explosion. "

Rotty wrote on Apr 18, 2008 9:39 PM:

" I was awoke, thought 7 french ladies were playing with my feet, found out it was just an earthquake, thought about calling the 911 Center, didn't want to be a "bob", (Apr 18, 2008 7:59 AM), so I rolled over & went back to sleep.
LOL! "

Chad(USAF) wrote on Apr 19, 2008 1:28 AM:

" Was an interesting time but having lived in So Cal for 10 years, it wasn't that big of a deal really. Not like Northridge in '94, that's for sure! (Which strangely enough was also at 4:30 in the morning) "

hanrobec wrote on Apr 19, 2008 4:31 AM:

" ROTTY: Awesome. Priceless. Poor Bob. "

sunbeam wrote on Apr 19, 2008 8:14 AM:

" Question: could we use these spaces for sensible comments rather than for a bunch of wise cracks from ones who apparently have nothing else to do with their time? just wondered. "

Tom Andres wrote on Apr 19, 2008 9:46 AM:

" Uh-oh, sounds like sunbeam is having a partly cloudy day. LOL "

Chad(USAF) wrote on Apr 19, 2008 11:23 AM:

" Partly cloudy or mostly sunny? "

Late Bird wrote on Apr 19, 2008 12:05 PM:

" We've got several cracks in our walls around the doors & on the ceiling that were not there before. I wonder how many people are checking for damage?

Gives Sunbeam a hug, have a great weekend! "

Rotty wrote on Apr 19, 2008 12:38 PM:

" Thanks, hanrobec.
LOL

.......

LOL @ Tom
sunbeam must be a nightlight with that vision.

.......

sunbeam, don't be a "bob". "

Bill55 wrote on Apr 19, 2008 10:13 PM:

" What a bunch of small town whiners!! You deserve what you get. Stand up and determine your own fate don't rely on others to it for you. "

Interested Observer wrote on Apr 20, 2008 7:51 AM:

" Having been raised in deep Southern Illinois, I knew immediately what was going on. Now, my question to you all is this: Do you have an 'earthquake box' filled with emergency supplies, water, food, medicine, blankets, a battery radio, etc.? You should, as most of us who grew up much closer to the NM Fault System do. Even if you don't need it for an earthquake, it could also be useful following an ice storm, a tornado, etc. . Being prepared to deal with a situation BEFORE it happens is the best thing you can do to ensure your and your family's safety.

PS-- Don't forget to chain a crescent wrench near your natural-gas meter, so you can shut it off after a quake. "

hanrobec wrote on Apr 21, 2008 3:04 PM:

" Interested Observer: Thanks for the tips...will do! P.S. Where in Southern Illinois--we have family in Goreville. "

Locke wrote on Apr 21, 2008 7:48 PM:

" This is God's punishment for our wickedness! Repent for the End is near!!! "

hanrobec wrote on Apr 22, 2008 1:15 AM:

" Locke: Don't you doom sayers prefer the phrase, "The end is nigh"? "

My Point of View wrote on Apr 22, 2008 12:05 PM:

" Locke is the only one that is right. It is God. He is unhappy abut the gas going over $3.50 "

ewarren wrote on Apr 23, 2008 8:24 AM:

" I live in Fairfield and have felt all of the quakes. I woke up to the one on Friday morning early, was teaching during the 10:15 one & then woke up to the 12:40 am one on Monday morning. It has been pretty frightening waking up to these and we have had other aftershocks as well. They say we can continue to have these for quite some time. The news down here said we had 2 more yesterday but I didn't feel those. At least they are smaller. Quite the experience for Southern IL. "

Nancy Thomas wrote on Apr 27, 2008 6:45 PM:

" I live in Northeast Nevada. There were a lot of earthquakes in Reno and Truckey on Friday morning and night and early Sat. Morn. I wonder if they tie in together? "