Residents of a 21 story apartment building on1655 Flatbush Ave, in Brooklyn, New York, gather under a Amoco gas station opposit the building, Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2011, moments after a 5.9 magnitude tremor shook the north east USA. The earthquake centered northwest of Richmond, Va., shook much of Washington, D.C., and was felt as far north as Rhode Island and New York City. Photo: Hayden Roger Celestin
News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Tues. Aug. 23, 2 p.m.: New Yorkers in lower Manhattan and Brooklyn, along with some residents in Rhode Island, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C. have reported feeling the impact of a 5.9 magnitude earthquake that rattled Richmond, VA.

The quake, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, was 3.7 miles deep. The quake sent hundreds of people spilling into the street a block from the White House. No damages were reported.

A 5.3 quake also rattled southern Colorado Monday, August 22, at 11:46 p.m. MDT, causing strong shaking, but minor damage, and was felt throughout the state of Colorado and neighboring states. The earthquake occurred approximately nine miles southwest of Trinidad, Colo.

This was the largest earthquake in Colorado since a M5.3 in August, 1967 at Rocky Mountain Arsenal. The largest earthquake in Colorado history was Nov 7th, 1882, near Rocky Mountain National Park; estimates vary but it was about a Magnitude 6.5.

Earthquakes are caused by the sudden release of accumulated strain by an abrupt shift of rock along a fracture in the earth or by volcanic or magmatic activity, or other sudden stress changes in the earth.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR