Earthquakes in Owensboro? There’s a Website for That

I'm not sure why this came up recently because we haven't experienced an earthquake in Owensboro in quite some time. But Chad mentioned how I can't feel earthquakes.

Well...that isn't NECESSARILY true, but he DOES have somewhat of a point and I will explain.

Several years ago, when I got to work, everyone was talking about an early morning earthquake, to which I responded, "What earthquake?"

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Chad informed me that Owensboro and the tri-state had experienced a quake that registered north of 5 on the Richter scale and that it had happened in the pre-dawn hours. At first, I thought he was joking because a human being should feel SOME movement if there's a 5-plus quake. But I didn't.

Granted, I was sound asleep and I'm a heavy sleeper, but you'd think if the room started moving, I'd bound out of bed. Nope. And I guess that's also when I realized just how heavy a sleeper I am.

So I found a website called EarthquakeTrack.com and it is what it says it is. It tracks earthquakes that date back 50 years--a guess, since the earliest one when I searched "Owensboro" was 48 years ago.

And, as you might expect, it offers the magnitude of each one. You can also filter your searches via a drop-down menu. You can choose "Recent" or "Biggest." And I wouldn't be surprised if the one I couldn't feel is the "biggest" of the "Biggest" on that list. It was a 5.4 quake in 2008 and Mt. Carmel, Illinois was the epicenter. It happened on April 18th at 4:36 AM, so that HAS to be the one.

Also, when you click on specific quakes, you'll get a full list of aftershocks and the times they occurred.

I am completely fascinated. It's like I have a new toy.

Additionally, based on the site's information, we have had a LOT of small quakes over the last half-century. And since we're not very far from the New Madrid Fault, I guess that shouldn't be surprising.

So, if you're interested in how things are "shaking" in Kentucky, you're all set.