Small Earthquake strikes near Knoxville
By Shane Gilreath
SCN Contributing Editor
[email protected]
Though the impact was insignificant to most, according to the United States Geological Survey, a leg of the US Department of Interior, a weak earthquake rattled the Knoxville area last week with an epicenter just south of the Tennessee River near Carlton. The earthquake, measuring 1.7, was one of five small quakes to hit the area within 60 miles of earthquakes that have struck over the course of 3 weeks.
Phenomena of this type are regularly occurring but rarely felt in East Tennessee. This latest event, whose epicenter was located near last year’s 4.1 magnitude quake, are seen as unlikely to be associated with the New Madrid fault line, which is situated near the Mississippi River and has historically caused issues for the state. Damage from earthquakes are typically caused when the magnitude is greater than a 3.0 but that risk rises significantly with 5.5 or greater.
The strongest earthquake ever recorded in East Tennessee was a 4.7-magnitude in 1973, with an epicenter in Alcoa. A 4.4 magnitude occurred in Decatur in 2018.
