Earthquake!
 

I was just sitting back watching Sex and The City and my whole house started shaking. At first I thought it was just this semi truck starting up that was parked across the street and then the chandeliers started swinging and a lamp fell over.

I don't think it was too bad of an earthquake maybe just close. I have not felt anything like that since I live in Southern California. My heart is just pounding. Thank god everyone I have called so far is ok and there are no reports of damage or injuries so that is good.

That is so scary. Glad you're okay.

Are you in Montana? From the wires: (moved about 15 minutes ago)

Tremor shakes western and southwestern Montana
HELENA, Mont. (AP) -- A magnitude-5.6 earthquake struck
southwestern Montana on Monday night, rattling windows and shaking
buildings, but there were no immediate reports of any serious
damage or injuries.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake was centered
about 23 miles northwest of Dillon. It was felt as far away as
Helena, about 120 miles to the north, and some residents of Great
Falls, more than 200 miles to the north, also reported feeling the
temblor.
In Dillon, Beaverhead County Commissioner Mike McGinley said
there were reports of broken glass and other minor damage, but
nothing significant.
"We've got fire and ambulance personnel standing by" just in
case, he said.
The USGS categorized the earthquake as "moderate," saying
initial reports showed it occurred about 25 miles underground.


Glad you're okay.

Glad you're okay! I'm sure it's incredibly frigtening...especially if you haven't experienced one before.

Yes, Dillon is only about 25 miles away from where I am. Thanks for the article. I am to see no one was hurt so far.

I experienced some very minor ones when I lived in LA. This one felt a little bigger than those ones. Probably just because it was so close.

This was all over the news last night for us too.... I was told the earthquake happened in Challis, but then again it's right near the Idaho/Montana border around the area that is being talked of in that article.

hahahaha my dad moved from socal to southwestern montana because he thought socal was going to have "the big one" and fall into the ocean... i can't wait to call him tomorrow for a little teasing.

glad to hear no one was hurt- once you get over the initial shock of the ground moving underneath you, they are kind of fun to ride out... especially when they roll continuously for a minute or two- i don't like the jolters... my favorites are 5 pointers. (just as long as no one gets hurt, of course)

The really bad ones are just kind of surreal to me.I was at work in a large hospital building when the one in '89 hit and it felt like a huge wrecking ball kept hitting the building.Others I have experienced just feel like you're on a small boat in a turbulent sea.

Im somewhat Geographically challenged but isnt Yellowstone nearby? That is the site of a HUGE caldera and there are signs that the pressure is building up because the lake is "tipping" and there is a noticeable bulge at one end. Plus, with all those geysers, you know there is geothermal activity going on, so its a definite HOT SPOT (pun intended!) If Yellowstone ever blew, considering the size of the caldera already there, the potential for a Krakatoa sized blast is very real, and THAT scares me....Where's David, Im sure HE would have technical info on this topic :nod:

My mom lives in El Sobrante and felt that one. Prior to that she lived in Los Banos and felt the Coalinga one. Im beginning to think she's an earthquake magnet....I used to want her to move up my way but maybe NOT on second thot :eek:

Yellowstone is about 4 hours away. A lot of what is reported about Yellowstone is not true and is pure sensationalism. Imagine that! It could definately erupt again though, which is scary. Here is an exerpt from an article from Geotimes.

"These articles reasonably highlighted the active thermal features beneath the lake and the importance of hydrothermal explosions, but they also incorrectly implied that active “bulges” were rapidly forming beneath the lake, that they were ready to explode, and that they could cause volcanism in their wake."

http://www.agiweb.org/geotimes/june0...ervolcano.html

Back in 1996/1997, whenever it was that Life magazine went out of print, they had an article in one of their last issues about Yellowstone errupting. Apparently, according to the article, geologists had determined that there is major volcanic activity there almost every 30 thousand years, and that a major eruption was due in the near future. The writers of the report claimed that the entirety of the park is the capstone of a massive underground volcano....bigger than any above-ground volcano anywhere else on Earth, and that when it blows, it will be heard as far as Madagascar, and that two-thirds of the US, and parts of western Canada would be covered in as much as two feet of ash.

Personally, I think this is rather exciting. :D

personally, I think it is rather SCARY!
as for the Yellowstone article, I am going by what a Yellowstone Park Ranger told my brother based on his daily patrols of the area. The trees at one end are dying because the magma is moving upward and making the ground too hot for the roots. the lake is tipping at a measurable level which is also scary so, even though your article seems to pooh pooh the prospect, there is much more evidence to suggest that the danger is even more compelling than people realise. All I know is anything that makes Krakatoa look like childs play scares the bejeebers outa me :eek:

Here's the map from the US Geological Survey:

Seismic Map: Montana

The initial quake measured a 5.6...and look at all the aftershocks (the blue squares)

That USGS site is cool cuz you can report if you felt it and where you felt it...