3.5 Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Southeast Missouri Near New Madrid Fault

Did you feel it this morning? Another earthquake struck Friday morning along the Mississippi River southeast of Poplar Bluff. The United States Geological Survey says it was a magnitude 3.5 and occurred at 8:45am. That area is near the New Madrid Fault. It was weaker than the tremor that hit in Oklahoma a few days ago.

A 5.6 magnitude earthquake struck Saturday morning near Pawnee, Oklahoma, and rattled through at least six surrounding states in the US heartland, according to the US Geological Survey.

The earthquake was also felt in Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, Nebraska, and Iowa, according to USGS geophysicists.

The New Madrid fault line is about twenty times larger than California’s famed San Andreas fault. The biggest earthquake in U.S. history happened in the New Madrid seismic zone in 1812. The fault line has been more active over the last few years.

Quakes have rattled residents in Illinois and Indiana over the last year. Eastern Arkansas felt a quake in late October 2015, making the quake the largest in the NMSZ in several years.

Emergency responders suggest having a basic plan that family members, and neighbors, can agree on. Missouri officials are saying that earthquake insurance is “critical.“