Earthquake Rattles Tennessee

A magnitude 4.4 earthquake rattled parts of Tennessee Wednesday morning. The earthquake occurred around 4:14 AM in eastern Tennessee about 7 miles northeast of Decatur.  Three aftershocks were also recorded. A M3.3 at 4:27 AM, a M1.3 at 5:00 AM, and a M1.4 at 5:41 AM.

At this time, no injuries have been reported. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said it received approximately 6,000 shake reports from people up to 250 miles away. Reports originated from Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, and Georgia, including Atlanta.

According to the USGS, this is the second strongest earthquake to hit eastern Tennessee. The strongest recorded earthquake was a M4.7 in 1973 near Maryville. There have only been 3 recorded earthquakes that were magnitude 4 or more in eastern Tennessee.