The ground literally shook in parts of Florida on June 8 as a rare earthquake shook the Sunshine State.
And more trembling conditions may be on the way, according to federal experts.
A 6.1-magnitude earthquake occurred around 2 p.m., and soon after that folks in Southwest Florida were on social media chiming in with their experience.
The U.S. Geological Survey, or USGS, documented the earthquake, which was centered northwest of Cuba.
“A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Cuba, ” said USGS spokesman Steve Sobieszcyk. “We are getting felt reports along the Gulf, including coastal and central Florida.”
The Tsunami Warning Center was monitoring the situation and said no massive quake-related waves were expected to hit Florida.
The earthquake was much stronger than the quake Floridians felt in February 2024, said Jochen Braunmiller, a research assistant professor at the University of South Florida.
“With each magnitude the energy release goes up by a factor of about 31,” Braunmiller told USA TODAY.
Will there be aftershocks?
“Given the size of the quake, we would expect further aftershocks over the coming days,” Sobiesczyk said. “We’d encourage (that people) if they feel earthquake shaking to drop, cover, and hold on.”
Florida does experience a few earthquakes each year, although the state is not known for shaky ground.
Tyler Fleming, with the National Weather Service in Ruskin, confirmed the quake.
“It was right around the top of the hour,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Tyler Fleming, who is stationed in Ruskin. “It was right at 2 o’clock. The Tsunami warning center looked at that right away and said there’s no warning for a wave based off how deep it is and the type of earthquake.”
Some Southwest Floridians felt the ground shake
Bruce Campbell lives in a fourth floor apartment unit in a large complex in Fort Myers.He said he and his wife were sitting on their couch watching a movie when the earthquake hit.“She felt it shake and looked (at) me and asked if I felt it, I said no and then it shook again and I looked at my water bottle and saw the water moving in it,” he told The News-Press & Naples Daily News.
He said it felt like a distant earthquake that lasted about 10 seconds, having felt them before up north, but wondered if it was a sink hole instead.
Adam and Jessica Shephard said their family felt the earthquake in Marco and East Naples. Their whole house shook and furniture and dishes rattled.They assumed it was an earthquake and looked it up on USGS to confirm, they said.
Chad Gillis is an environment reporter and can be reached by email at cgillis@news-press.com.
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This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Southwest Florida feels earthquake off Cuba, what people are saying
Reporting by Chad Gillis and Mickenzie Hannon, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Fort Myers News-Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Chad Gillis and Mickenzie Hannon, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News | USA TODAY Network
