Hollis, Maine: Epicenter of of the Oct. 16 earthquake. File art
Middlebury — An 4.6 magnitude earthquake centered three miles below York County, Maine, was felt in western Vermont after 7:30 p.m. Oct. 16.
A spokesman for the U.S. Geological Survey said the epicenter was about 20 miles west of Portland.
Residents from Burlington to Rutland in Vermont reported felt the tremor. Shockwaves traveled through New England to as far south as Connecticut.
People in New England, and in its geological extension southward through Long Island, have felt small earthquakes and suffered damage from infrequent larger ones since colonial times, according to the USGS. The largest known New England earthquakes occurred in 1638 (magnitude 6.5) in Vermont or New Hampshire, and in 1755 (magnitude 5.8) offshore from Cape Ann northeast of Boston. The Cape Ann earthquake caused severe damage to the Boston waterfront.
Maine's Emergency Management Agency center received many calls from concerned residents, but there are no official reports of damage.
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