State emergency officials said no injuries or major damage were reported Saturday night as two small earthquakes briefly shook central Mississippi – a part of the state where quakes are unusual.
The U.S. Geological Survey said both occurred in Madison County, north of Jackson.
The first was a 3.2-magnitude quake at 7:39 p.m. CDT about 4 miles southwest of Canton, a city that’s home to a Nissan manufacturing plant.
The second was a 3.0-magnitude quake at 8:08 p.m. CDT about 5 miles southwest of Canton.
Mississippi Emergency Management Agency spokesman Greg Flynn said that although there were no immediate reports of injuries or major damage, firefighters in Madison County were out checking on reports of minor damage.
“We tell our citizens all the time that earthquakes can and do happen here in Mississippi,” MEMA Director Robert Latham said in a news release. “While it is unusual to feel them here in the central part of the state, these were relatively small, shallow quakes and we are fortunate there are no injuries or major damage being reported.”
Patrice Guilfoyle lives in Gluckstadt, near where the quakes occurred. She said in an interview that she felt both. During the second one, she said, “The house shook really quick for like 2 seconds.”
She said it felt slightly stronger than the shaking that occurs when companies use underground blasts to explore for natural gas near her subdivision.
Gov. Phil Bryant was in touch with Madison County Sheriff Randy Tucker to offer any state assistance that might be needed, the MEMA news release said.
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