Rare Moderate Earthquake Strikes Southern Texas

By Mark Dunphy - Thu Oct 20, 1:57 pm

Epicentre of Thursday's earthquake. Image Google/IWO/USGS

A shallow, moderate earthquake struck southern Texas (TX) on Thursday morning, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). It was one of the strongest earthquakes to hit the region in at least two decades.

The 4.6 magnitude quake hit at 07:25 AM local time (13:25 PM GMT) and was recorded at a depth of 5 km (3.1 miles). The EMSC estimated that the quake measured 5.0mb on the Richter Scale.

The epicentre of the quake was located 22 km (14 miles) NW (321°) from Pawnee, TX; 23 km (14 miles) SSW (213°) from Falls City, TX; 26 km (16 miles) WSW (249°) from Karnes City, TX; 60 km (37 miles) NW of Beeville, TX; 76 km (47 miles) SSE (154°) from San Antonio, TX; 166 km (103 miles) SSW of AUSTIN, TX; 92 km (57 miles) E of Pearsall, TX; and 463 km (288 miles) SSW (197°) from Dallas, TX.

The most recent earthquake to strike the region hit on 25 April, 2010. The 4.0 magnitude earthquake was recorded 56 km west of Corpus Christi.

Texas has no active or dormant volcanoes and few earthquakes, being situated far from an active plate tectonic boundary. The Big Bend area, located about 550 kilometres west of San Antonio, is the most seismically active; however, the area is sparsely populated and suffers minimal damages and injuries, and no known fatalities have been attributed to a Texas earthquake.