2 earthquakes recorded near Grovetown; did you feel them?

GROVETOWN, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - If you felt some shaking Wednesday night in Columbia County, it wasn’t your imagination.

Two separate earthquakes were detected near Grovetown, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

A 2.0-magnitude earthquake was detected at 9:19 p.m., and another 1.9 magnitude earthquake was detected around 9:34 p.m.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, people in Appling, Augusta, Evans, Howell, Maddox and Martinez likely felt a little shaking.

A shaky history

Earthquakes really aren’t unusual in our region, although huge ones are less common.

In 1886, a magnitude-6.7 quake centered in Charleston, S.C., was felt up and down the East Coast and even in the Midwest. It’s lived in memory as the most damaging earthquake in the Southeast, killing at least 60 people and destroying much of Charleston.

A Jan. 23, 1903, earthquake affected the South Carolina-Georgia border near Savannah, with light to moderate effects seen in Augusta.

And on April 19, 1907, dishes rattled and objects were thrown from shelves throughout the 26,000-square-kilometer area that included Augusta.

A magnitude-3.4 earthquake on May 19, 1971, broke windows in Orangeburg County.

Although the Augusta area has been affected by earthquakes historically, the Augusta-Richmond County government says on its website:

“Earthquakes in Georgia are rare, particularly when compared to seismic hot spots in the western United States. Quake activity in Georgia is most affected by faults in the coastal planes area of South Carolina and the Tennessee mountains. Given seismic history in Georgia, residents should be prepared for earthquakes and know what safety precautions to take in the event of a quake.”

Earthquake tips are offered at https://www.augustaga.gov/1900/Earthquakes.

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