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- A 4.1 magnitude earthquake originated near Greenback, Tennessee, impacting areas including Asheville, North Carolina.
- While aftershocks are possible, the USGS estimates a 5% probability, typically less intense than the initial quake.
ASHEVILLE – If you felt a rumbling start to your Saturday morning, it might have been a hungry tummy, but more likely it was an earthquake that rocked Western North Carolina.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, there was a 4.1 magnitude earthquake at 9:04 a.m. May 10.
USGS maps show that the earthquake’s origin was Greenback, Tennessee, which is about 30 miles south of Knoxville, Tennessee. Asheville is about 144 miles east of Greenback.
Paul Caruso, a geophysicist with the USGS in Golden, Colorado, said folks in Asheville “absolutely” felt the earthquake.
“So far (about 10:30 a.m.) we have reports of 23,000 people who have felt it in the region,” he told the Citizen Times May 10.
The shaking was felt as far east as Charlotte and as far north as Washington, D.C., and as far south as Atlanta, Georgia, according to the maps.
Whole lot of shaking going on?
Caruso said the earthquake in the Asheville was between a III mmi and IV mmi. The Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale measures how much “shaking” is felt in an area.
He said the range in Roman numerals is I to X (1 to 10), with I being barely perceptible, and X meaning total devastation.
“A III-IV mmi is moderate shaking, your chandeliers may move back and forth, but we wouldn’t expect any damage,” Caruso said.
Will there be aftershocks?
Caruso said “there is a probability that there will be aftershocks.” The USGS website shows there is a 5% probability for aftershocks. These are usually less intense than the original aftershock.
How seismically active is Asheville?
Since 2000 there have been four earthquakes within a 75-mile radius of Asheville larger than 3.5 magnitude, Caruso said.
In the past 25 years there have been 169 earthquakes larger than 2.5 magnitude within a 75-mile radius of Asheville.
According to past Citizen Times reporting, following are the earthquakes larger than 3.5 magnitude that were centered in Western North Carolina:
- Feb. 21, 1916: Skyland, 5.5.
- Jul. 8, 1926: Mitchell County, 5.2.
- Aug. 9, 2020: Sparta, 5.1.
- Aug. 31, 1861: Wilkesboro, 5.1.
- May 13, 1957: McDowell County, 4.1.
- Nov. 24, 1957: Jackson County, 4.
- Jul. 2, 1957: Buncombe County, 3.7.
- May 5, 1981: Henderson County, 3.5.
This story will be updated.
Karen Chávez is the Citizen Times Executive Editor. Tips, comments, questions? Email her at KChavez@citizentimes.com.
