After years without an earthquake, earthquakes have again occurred in this part of South Carolina

For the second time in less than a week, South Carolina was hit by an earthquake.

A magnitude 2.1 earthquake was recorded Sunday morning in McCormick County, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Not only was it the second confirmed quake in South Carolina in a six-day period, but it was also recorded in the same part of the Palmetto State where the previous quake struck.

Sunday’s quake was confirmed at 2:53 a.m. near Jackson, the South Carolina Emergency Management Division reported.

According to the USGS, the earthquake struck about 2,800 feet (860 meters) below the Earth’s surface.

This was the 12^and confirmed earthquake in South Carolina this year, after 28 earthquakes were recorded in 2023, the state Department of Natural Resources said.

The last time seismic activity was recorded in South Carolina was on Aug. 26, when shaking was recorded in the form of a magnitude 1.9 earthquake in the Jackson area of ​​Aiken County, according to data from the state Department of Natural Resources.

According to the USGS, this was the first earthquake recorded in McCormick County since May 25, 2019. It is only the third time since 2006 that seismic activity has been confirmed.

History of earthquakes in SC

It’s not often that earthquakes occur outside the Midlands region of the Palmetto State, especially outside of Kershaw County. According to the South Carolina DNR, 62 earthquakes have been confirmed there since late June 2022.

That’s also where the most powerful earthquakes in recent times in South Carolina were recorded: on June 29, 2022.

That day, two earthquakes — one 3.5 and the other 3.6 — struck in a flurry of tremors and aftershocks. They were the two largest earthquakes to hit South Carolina in nearly a decade. A 4.1 quake struck McCormick County in 2014.

Anyone who felt vibrations, tremors or heard rumbling noises from Sunday morning’s earthquake can report them to the USGS.

The latest quake makes at least 116 detected in the Palmetto State since the start of 2022, according to the South Carolina DNR. All but 13 of the quakes were in the Midlands.

According to the DNR, a total of 108 earthquakes have occurred in the Columbia region since the magnitude 3.3 earthquake on December 27, 2021.

The SC Emergency Management Division said Sunday morning earthquake was classified as a microquakeaccording to the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale.

No major damage or injuries have been reported from the recent earthquakes.

Earthquakes with a magnitude of 2.5 or less often go unnoticed and are typically only recorded by a seismograph, according to Michigan Technological University. An earthquake with a magnitude of less than 5.5 is unlikely to cause significant damage, the school said.

It used to be common for South Carolina to have between six and 10 earthquakes a year, the S.C. Geological Survey previously reported. According to the DNR, there have been 130 earthquakes in South Carolina since Jan. 18, 2021.

At a 2022 meeting to discuss the earthquakes, state geologist Scott Howard said there may be as many as 200 smaller quakes that went unnoticed and unrecorded.

Why is there an increase in earthquakes?

Scientists still have no explanation for the eruption.

Some experts have theorized that there is a connection between the Wateree River and the earthquakes northeast of Columbia. They said that the combination of a single moderate earthquake in December 2022 and high water levels in the Wateree River during parts of 2022 and 2023 contributed to the quakes.

There is still no clear cause for the earthquakes in the Midlands.

Elgin, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northeast of Columbia and located on a fault line, was hit by an unusual earthquake swarm, leaving some residents feeling uneasy.

The series of quakes could be the longest period of earthquake activity in the state’s history, officials said. But they do not believe the series of small quakes is an indication that a larger quake is coming.

“While the frequency of these small earthquakes may alarm some, we do not anticipate a significant damage earthquake in South Carolina at this time, even though we know our state has had them decades ago,” Kim Stenson, director of South Carolina EMD, said earlier in a press release.

“Now is the time to review your insurance policies for earthquake coverage, secure any items in your home that could pose a hazard during a quake, and remember to fall, cover, and hold on until the quake passes. Here are the precautions South Carolinians can take to prepare for earthquakes.”

The largest earthquake ever recorded in South Carolina and on the East Coast of the United States was a devastating magnitude 7.3 quake in Charleston in 1886.

According to the state EMD, the quake killed 60 people and was felt over 2.5 million square miles (6.5 million square kilometers), from Cuba to New York and from Bermuda to the Mississippi River.

Reported earthquakes in SC in 2021-24