Earthquake Swarm in Arkansas Intensifies. Memphis, Tennessee could be epicenter for the next big one

reply to post by Robin Marks


It's either head far north or to Australia. LOL

Magnitude 3.7 - ARKANSAS
2011 March 03 15:55:23 UTC

* Details
* Maps

Earthquake Details

* This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.

Magnitude 3.7
Date-Time

* Thursday, March 03, 2011 at 15:55:23 UTC
* Thursday, March 03, 2011 at 09:55:23 AM at epicenter

Location 35.226°N, 92.432°W
Depth 2.7 km (1.7 miles) (poorly constrained)
Region ARKANSAS
Distances

* 3 km (2 miles) NE (35°) from Wooster, AR
* 4 km (2 miles) W (264°) from Greenbrier, AR
* 10 km (6 miles) S (184°) from Twin Groves, AR
* 15 km (10 miles) N (7°) from Conway, AR
* 55 km (34 miles) N (350°) from Little Rock, AR
* 425 km (264 miles) SSW (208°) from St. Louis, MO

Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 1.1 km (0.7 miles); depth +/- 12.4 km (7.7 miles)
Parameters NST= 68, Nph=108, Dmin=14.5 km, Rmss=1.48 sec, Gp= 36°,
M-type="Nuttli" surface wave magnitude (mbLg), Version=6
Source

* U.S. Geological Survey, National Earthquake Information Center:
World Data Center for Seismology, Denver

Event ID usb0001nvz

your beat me Mike

Verry shallow quake, that 3.7.

Is this of any greater concern than the concerns that already exist? I certainly don't like to see them that shallow.

EDIT to add: reply to post by Anmarie96

You beat me on the other one just before. I had a post ready to go but checked on my second ATS browser window and saw you'd done it already. In any case it's better to have it posted here twice and ASAP for our friends in Arkansas, than to perhaps post it late...

Mike

The media will be making waves soon. Perfect storm. Commision calls emergency meeting. Mother nature provides the exclaimation mark.

reply to post by Robin Marks

Yup. Two more mag 3 to 3-plus quakes inside half an hour.

How much of a message do they need, I wonder?

Mag 3.0 now upgraded to 3.7:
Magnitude 3.7 - ARKANSAS
2011 March 03 15:31:49 UTC

* Details
* Maps

Earthquake Details

* This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.

Magnitude 3.7
Date-Time

* Thursday, March 03, 2011 at 15:31:49 UTC
* Thursday, March 03, 2011 at 09:31:49 AM at epicenter

Location 35.266°N, 92.371°W
Depth 6 km (3.7 miles)
Region ARKANSAS
Distances

* 4 km (3 miles) NNE (21°) from Greenbrier, AR
* 7 km (4 miles) SSW (207°) from Guy, AR
* 7 km (5 miles) SE (139°) from Twin Groves, AR
* 21 km (13 miles) NNE (21°) from Conway, AR
* 59 km (37 miles) N (356°) from Little Rock, AR
* 419 km (260 miles) SSW (207°) from St. Louis, MO

Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 0.4 km (0.2 miles); depth +/- 0.3 km (0.2 miles)
Parameters NST= 17, Nph= 26, Dmin=3 km, Rmss=0.22 sec, Gp= 54°,
M-type="Nuttli" surface wave magnitude (mbLg), Version=B
Source

* Cooperative New Madrid Seismic Network

Event ID nm030311j
***************************************
NOTE: Just to be clear...this is now TWO mag 3.7s in half an hour.

reply to post by SusanFrey


Any place is going to have it's problems. It comes down to picking what we can live with.....

Off topic but I myself gave up fleeing from hurricanes, only to find myself here waiting for the earth to erupt. I had no idea when I moved to Memphis after Katrina that this could occur here, had never ever heard of the New Madrid fault, I guess no one down in Louisiana thought about these things because life down there is about the Gulf storms. Life can be full of surprises. I'm getting to old to keep moving because of disasters and its hard on kids. At least I'm CPR and first aid trained and am as prepared as I can be at this point.

reply to post by SusanFrey


and also to

reply to post by KathyG427


If you can, could you both check your houses and also, if any neighbors are out, please ask them if they felt these latest two quakes? Also, what are your animals doing, and the local birdlife?

Oh, is there anything on the local news reports?

Many thanks,

Mike

reply to post by JustMike

Click on the USGS map for that quake and it's now "file not found" so I suspect they're going to downgrade it again. I'd guess around a 3.3 to 3.2 range would be about right.

Mike

reply to post by JustMike


I had more moulding pop off (specifically, door frame in bathroom... top of vertical piece ). Misc small items moved on shelves but didn`t fall. My dogs wouldn`t eat their normal morning meal at 8am. Haven`t seen any birds this morning, even where I put some feed out for them.

I`m in between Little Rock and Hot Springs.

Originally posted by JustMike
reply to post by JustMike

 

Click on the USGS map for that quake and it's now "file not found" so I suspect they're going to downgrade it again. I'd guess around a 3.3 to 3.2 range would be about right.

Mike

I was gonna ask if they downgraded it again, but nope. Another one!
2.4 2011/03/03 09:59:04 35.234N 92.369W 5.0 2 km ( 1 mi) E of Greenbrier, AR

reply to post by dragonlover12

Thank you for posting that info!

The animals: dogs off their feed, birds also not feeding. This is so commonly reported it escapes me how some experts still assert there is no real evidence to show that animals sense quakes ahead of time. The dogs might pick up on your own tension but the birds probably won't. They're sensing things very well and as some birds can actually see magnetic fields (which has been demonstrated in lab experiments), they could be feeling confused, disoriented or just plain scared.

Your home: it would be helpful if you can photo-document any damage as besides the insurance angle, at sometime in future there might be an inquiry of some kind and such evidence could be very telling. Over and over we hear officialdom saying "no reports of damage" so it would also be worth calling a local station and letting them know that although the damage is not massive, there is damage. And as it doesn't heal itself that means cost and labor and materials.

Popping around door frames indicates some serious movement. It might be worth checking up in the attic to see how the roofing beams look. They'll probably be okay but I mention it just to be on the safe side.

BTW folks if your home is built of brick (or masonry/stone), doorways are apparently not always the ideal place to shelter in the event of a quake. If the door frame fails -- and sometimes they do -- you don't want to be under all that unsupported building material. Also if the door swings around and slams, then Murphy's law says you could get your fingers jammed. In a crisis that could be a serious problem as it reduces your dexterity and the ability to help yourself and others.

Mike

reply to post by JustMike


It looks like they 'updated' the depth.

Magnitude 3.7
Date-Time Thursday, March 03, 2011 at 15:55:24 UTC
Thursday, March 03, 2011 at 09:55:24 AM at epicenter

Location 35.241°N, 92.389°W
Depth 6.6 km (4.1 miles)

reply to post by JustMike



Very good information, thanks!

reply to post by OneisOne

Yes, that 2.4 is definitely another quake.

The one from 15:31:49m UTC (9:41:39 am local) that was originally advised as a mag 3.0, then got upgraded to a 3.7 (see posts above), has now been downgraded to a 3.2. This seems pretty right so I think they'll leave it there:

Magnitude 3.2 - ARKANSAS
2011 March 03 15:31:49 UTC

* Details
* Summary
* Maps
* Scientific & Technical

Earthquake Details

* This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.

Magnitude 3.2
Date-Time

* Thursday, March 03, 2011 at 15:31:49 UTC
* Thursday, March 03, 2011 at 09:31:49 AM at epicenter
* Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones

Location 35.266°N, 92.371°W
Depth 6 km (3.7 miles)
Region ARKANSAS
Distances

* 4 km (3 miles) NNE (21°) from Greenbrier, AR
* 7 km (4 miles) SSW (207°) from Guy, AR
* 7 km (5 miles) SE (139°) from Twin Groves, AR
* 21 km (13 miles) NNE (21°) from Conway, AR
* 59 km (37 miles) N (356°) from Little Rock, AR
* 419 km (260 miles) SSW (207°) from St. Louis, MO

Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 0.4 km (0.2 miles); depth +/- 0.3 km (0.2 miles)
Parameters NST= 17, Nph= 26, Dmin=3 km, Rmss=0.22 sec, Gp= 54°,
M-type="Nuttli" surface wave magnitude (mbLg), Version=B
Source

* Cooperative New Madrid Seismic Network

Event ID nm030311k
***************************************************************
Mike

reply to post by JustMike

If you can, could you both check your houses and also, if any neighbors are out, please ask them if they felt these latest two quakes? Also, what are your animals doing, and the local birdlife? Oh, is there anything on the local news reports? Many thanks, Mike

I've checked the house and I don't see any apparent damage - it's a brick house on a slab - there are probably small cracks in the mortar that aren't easily visible. As of yesterday I'm babysitting my sister's 2 dogs that aren't used to the quakes and they both came running to me when the house shook. I think my dog is getting used to them.
There are birds out singing/chirping in the trees around here. Nothing out of the ordinary outdoors.

Found this today which will probably be of interest to all of us:
www.memphis.edu...

reply to post by JustMike


I`ts a mobile home, so structural integrity probably wasn`t that great to begin with. I haven`t even bothered fixing the other moulding that popped off in the 4.7 or the 4.1.... the hits just keep on coming.

My dogs usually lay on the grass to soak up sun, but they have been roaming back and forth all morning.

I gathered from the Red Cross the best place to be in an earthquake (if you have a mobile home) is outside ! I , however, prefer to watch the screen of my computer (GEE is amazing!). And grab screenshots when I can. One day I`ll go back and look at all of the screenshots and attach the USGS info to the files for each one. Makes me feel a little less helpless (if that makes sense).

Originally posted by dragonlover12
reply to post by JustMike

 

I had more moulding pop off (specifically, door frame in bathroom... top of vertical piece ). Misc small items moved on shelves but didn`t fall. My dogs wouldn`t eat their normal morning meal at 8am. Haven`t seen any birds this morning, even where I put some feed out for them.

I`m in between Little Rock and Hot Springs.

edit on 3-3-2011 by dragonlover12 because: spelling

Wow, you are right in the line of fire!

Keep your gas tanks topped off, get some bottled water stashed away that will last you at least a week or two. Put the water in several locations in case one is inaccessible. I agree with Mike, the doorframes are ok if you must stay inside, but an Earthquake is not like a tornado or hurricane, there is no flying debris, so you should get outside if possible.

As for your previous and ongoing damage, if you have gaslines, make sure to check all the connections. There are liquids and pastes that can be brushed on to find even the smallest leaks. If you have the money, you should put some flexible connections on gas and water lines to try and limit damage and danger from these small earthquakes. If they quakes get bigger, there isn't much you can do for the home, but you can be prepared. Have a couple of rendezvous points set up with your family in case you are seperated when a major one strikes. Keep a B.O.B. at the house that can be grabbed to exit quickly, and carry an E.D.C. when you leave the house in case something happens and you can't get back there readily.

Being prepared is not paranoia, it is just good management to have a plan with your family, and have basic necessities readily accessible.

reply to post by lasertaglover

I'm actually quite relieved about that revision of the depth. A bit deeper is better than very shallow. And revisions of depth (and mag) are quite common; as more data comes in and can be analyzed, they are able to refine the figures and better determine the actual location and depth of the hypocenter and hence the epicenter. (The epicenter is the surface location directly above the quake, wheras the hypocenter is the actual location below the surface where the quake occurs.)

and also:

reply to post by justsaying


Glad to be of some help... A couple of decades ago I lost my home in a fire and so I have some understanding of how difficult it can be in these situations. ("Difficult" is such an inadequate word sometimes.) True, a fire is not a quake, but I assure you that many of us can empathize with the situation in your part of the world, based on our own experiences.

People matter. People are first. People should always be first... My prayer is that you all will be safe and this will not get any worse there than it already is.

Mike