8-23-2011

Earthquake strikes Eastern seaboard

A 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck Mineral, Virginia, 87 miles outside of Washington, D.C., today. You can see the White House during the quake as the Secret Service walks on its roof in the video above.

Shaking could be felt from Toronto to New York and all the way to North Carolina at close to 2 p.m. EST this afternoon. The quake lasted 45 seconds, and is one of the largest ever to hit the East Coast.

The Pentagon, Capitol and White House were all evacuated, according to the Associated Press.

Roll Call says the Capitol was evacuated after staffers saw "chandeliers ... swinging from side to side." According to an eyewitness on Twitter, the National Cathedral is damaged, with some of its masonry falling off altogether.

I felt it actually and an odd feeling.

My first was a little less than that but was not far from the epicenter.

Was a 5.4 Payne Alabama 2003 I believe. I was asleep and nearly got jolted to the floor with the waves. Caught air between me and the bed, was wild.

Really weird seeing a solid wall move like it was water.

I remember getting woken up by an earthquake in IL while residing in TN.
It was about 2-3 years ago. My first feel

Don't even ask about hurricanes. Car and house= not good!

I've witnessed a few hurricanes and one time the eye of the storm did go right over my town and house. Odd, 100+ winds and then clear with the sun out -- back to 100+ winds.

i left SoCal in 92' and moved to Hawaii just before a 7.6 quake hit a few miles from my home

-- i was just in time however, for my first hurricane - Iniki - fortunately for us, it just missed Oahu's West side and went into the channel and bullseyed Kauai. i got all-time surf the day before on the East side at Makapuu (20'-25' on the face and larger set) and the day after we could see Kauai getting blasted as we got Perfect Uncrowded Pipeline (up to 15' on the faces) and surfed till we couldn't surf any longer .. then we cleaned up the mess and the electricity was back the day after that

Seriously Poppin?
..........and surfed till we couldn't surf any longer?

You need an editor?........ I is hither

Just messing with you, take no offense.

My first Hurricane was Hurricane Gloria in 1985. The eye came right over the little town I grew up in Long Island, Copiague. The storm was 110 mph winds plus moving at 30 mph so it was pretty fierce. Not a tree or telephone was left standing. It took 3 weeks to get power back on. A crew was in from Ohio next door hooking up the power and the guy didn't know the line was energized and he got fried, it was so sad. That storm changed the look of the town from a lot of trees to concrete jungle.

It looks like Irene is taking the same course as Gloria.