Yesterday afternoon at about a quarter to 2pm (EDT), an earthquake hit 85 km north of Ottawa where I live. It was a 5.0, which by Californian standards is worth a small break in whatever conversation they might be having at the time, but up here it was the most significant quake to hit here in recent memory. The other difference between this type and those felt along major fault lines, is the depth. Earthquakes like those felt in California are shallow, so their energy is both intense and focused. Earthquakes like the one felt here yesterday are quite a distance down... 18 km to be exact, usually on a fault line running underneath the continent itself, extending perpendicular to the mid-Atlantic ridge. Because the shock is so far down and the rock above is so solid, the intensity of the quake is broadcast over a wide area. There have been reports that the quake was felt as far east as New Brunswick, as far west as Sault St. Marie, and as far into the States as Ohio. That said, some people here in Ottawa who were outside or driving in their cars somewhere, didn't feel it at all.
I was working at a Wal-Mart, when it suddenly sounded as though someone had started up a powerful air-conditioner, but the AC was already on. The sound seemed to start at the back of the store and sweep its way forward. It was then that I felt the shaking, which peaked rather abruptly instead of having any kind of plateau. The funny thing is that just before the rumbling hit, a customer was asking for help in another department. As the shock hit, she kinda stopped what she was saying, then as the rumbling was diminishing, she just went right back with her question, even as some merchandise was falling off shelves behind me. Talk about being un-phased.
There were apparently some aftershocks in the hours following, but management had ordered the store evacuated as a precaution so we were out in the parking lot and didn't feel a thing. My Mother-In-Law just called and said that she felt another aftershock in the wee hours of the morning, but I was asleep and don't recall feeling anything... though I did wake up once or twice but as I'm used to getting up for a 7am shift, and got to sleep in this morning, its not uncommon for that to happen.
Damage here has been nearly non-existent. There were some power outages in a couple places, some cracks in cement walls, and a few chunks of concrete fell from a freeway under-pass. Also, a few traffic lights lost power at scattered places throughout the city, and most cellphone carriers were overloaded with traffic. As a result, with all the store staff standing in the parking lot, and everyone started hauling out their cellphones to call home or to friends, no-one could get through.
Did anyone else out there feel that?
