In a rare occurrence for Florida, a light earthquake occurred off the Atlantic coast and was felt by some in Central Florida. The severity was measured at a 4.0 on the Richter scale, which ranges from 1.0 (not noticeable) to 9.9 (catastrophic damage).
The quake occurred 101 miles off the coast of Cape Canaveral at 10:48 pm Wednesday night, just over six miles beneath the sea floor according to the United States Coast Guard. Close to 100 people reported to the USCG that they felt shaking, in cities such as Cocoa Beach, Melbourne, Titusville, Satellite Beach, and Palm Bay.
A report from CBS News states that only one other earthquake has been felt anywhere near this one since 1900. That instance occurred on June 11th, 2001, when a 3.3 magnitude quake occurred 86 miles off the coast of St. Augustine Beach. As mentioned in that same report, earthquakes have been reported on other occasions but turned out to be the experimental detonation of explosive devices at the bottom of the ocean.
No damage was reported in the earthquake, thankfully, and those handful who felt it can consider themselves one of the very select few who have in the Sunshine State. The largest earthquake detected in Florida’s history occurred on January 12th, 1879 when a 4.4. magnitude quake hit. Wednesday night, however, was the strongest quake ever recorded off Florida’s Atlantic coast.