An earthquake in Mississippi? It happens more than you think
A 2.1 magnitude temblor was reported in southern Mississippi on Wednesday, though it wasn’t much of a rattler.
The quake struck just after 2:30 a.m. near Collins, about 30 miles northwest of Hattiesburg, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It comes a little more than a month after a slightly weaker 2.0-magnitude earthquake struck the town of Darling in northwest Mississippi, some 230 miles away.
No injuries or damage were reported Wednesday, officials said. In fact, no one reported feeling the quake.
It marked Mississippi’s first reported earthquake of the new year, but it is the fourth to strike the state since mid-November, according to geologists. A second 2.0 magnitude quake was reported near Water Valley on Nov. 18, followed by a similarly weak 1.9 magnitude temblor near Hamilton on Dec. 2.
All have measured low on the Richter scale, which was replaced by the Moment magnitude scale and measures the energy released at the source of the earthquake.
Quakes below 2.5 magnitude are not often felt but are large enough to be measured by seismographs, according to Michigan Tech.
The Magnolia State has only had a handful of notable temblors in its history, most of which have been far from intense, seismologists say.
“Since its admission into the Union in 1817, Mississippi has had only four earthquakes of intensity V or greater within its borders,” according to a USGS report. “Although the number of earthquakes known to have been centered within Mississippi’s boundaries is small, the State has been affected by numerous shocks located in neighboring States.”
The state’s last major quake, the New Madrid Seismic Zone Earthquake of 1812, was felt as far south as the Gulf Coast and caused the Mississippi River to overflow its banks, according to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency.
This story was originally published January 20, 2021 at 10:42 AM.