At approximately 10:23am on Friday, April 5, a magnitude 4.7 earthquake rattled greater Glenside for about 30 seconds.
The earthquake had an epicenter seven kilometers north northeast of Whitehouse Station in New Jersey, according to Earthquake.usgs.gov, and could be felt in parts of New York and New Jersey.
It had a depth of about 3 miles, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro says his team and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency are actively monitoring the situation, and local municipalities have addressed the incident as well:
From the Abington Township Police Department:
EARTHQUAKE: We are aware of the earthquake that just occurred. There is no need to call 911 unless it caused significant damage or injury.
From Cheltenham Township Emergency Management:
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck in New Jersey several minutes ago. Tremors were felt in Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties. There is no report of damage or injuries. Please do not call 9-1-1 unless you have a true emergency.
According to Philadelphiaencyclopedia.org, earthquakes in the Philly region have been relatively few and small in magnitude, though the region has had the most seismic activity of all regions in Pennsylvania, “perhaps emanating from stress on the North American tectonic plate that remained after the breakup of the continents about 200 million years ago.”
Montgomery County experienced a series of quakes during three months in 1980, the encyclopedia said. The largest was in Abington at magnitude 3.7 on March 11. The quakes were located around the Huntington Valley fault, running through Glenside, Abington, and Jenkintown and began on March 2, 1980.
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Photos: Philadelphiaencyclopedia.org